Focusing on the participation disparity in policing Northern Ireland, this monograph explores the historical and cultural factors behind the low engagement of the Catholic population in the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) at its inception in 2001. It assesses the impact of the Patten Commission's recommendation for a balanced recruitment strategy and investigates the political and cultural challenges in shifting policing practices from a colonial framework to a more liberal model, as advocated by Patten.
