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Through 40 in-depth interviews with female officers, this research examines how women made sense of the events of 2020, focusing on their social and occupational identities as police officers. Using thematic analysis and social identity theory, the study analyzes how female officers construct and maintain professional identities when facing institutional challenges. Findings reveal that the 2020 legitimacy crisis created identity disruption, forcing officers to engage in sensemaking strategies to preserve their professional identity like narrative construction. Officers with intersectional identities experienced additional challenges where traditional identity work strategies proved to be insufficient in helping officers make sense of the events. These officers faced competing identity demands, creating tensions between their professional role and other social identities. This research highlights complexities of navigating multiple identities during institutional crisis and offers insights into police culture reform and retention strategies.
Rief et al. (Thu,) studied this question.