There are two components to community policing: community partnership and problem-solving.
Community Partnership: Practiced in varying degrees by almost half of the law enforcement agencies in the U.S., this value-driven approach to providing police services functions at the neighborhood level and its success is tied to changes in police organizational culture. Community values must be determined and jurisdictions delineated by social boundaries rather than statistical areas. Law enforcement agencies must support their basic social institutions such as schools, recreation centers, and other groups providing valuable community services.
Problem-Solving: This component centers on a belief that crime and disorder can be analyzed as problems that are the result of underlying conditions, and that if these conditions are changed, the problems may be solved. Traditionally, police are seen as "crime fighters" as opposed to "problem solvers." Community-Oriented Policing and Problem Solving tries to fix the source of criminal activity rather than just try to preserve the peace by arresting and prosecuting offenders.
Community Oriented Policing and Problem Solving (COPPS) requires a basic shift from traditional policing methods. For one thing, supervisors and managers must change their perspective as it pertains to leadership, and give street officers more authority. The inherent flexibility of the COPPS philosophy will not work for certain agencies, which demand a military-style structure and strong documentation in their training programs.
The trainers assign "street" problems to trainees and have them learn about policing in the context of solving those problems. Trainees work through responses with the help of their Police Training Officer.
The model uses a number of tools, including a learning matrix and problem-based learning exercises. Below is a sample of a learning matrix, showing "core competencies," which are specific skills, knowledge, and abilities that have been identified as essential for good policing.