THE GROWING CRIME PROBLEM IN THE 1960'S AND EARLY 1970'S HAS BEEN MET WITH AN INCREASED EMPHASIS ON POLICE PROFESSIONALIZATION THROUGH IMPROVED TRAINING, INCREASED POLICE SPECIALIZATION, USE OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY, AND INCREASES IN THE POLICE RANKS. IN SPITE OF THESE IMPROVEMENTS, LIMITED PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE AGAINST THE CRIME PROBLEM. IN A NEW EFFORT TO IMPROVE POLICE PERFORMANCE, MANY JURISDICTIONS HAVE TURNED TO A DIFFERENT FOCUS IN POLICING: ONE WHICH STRESSES THE USE OF POLICE GENERALISTS INSTEAD OF SPECIALISTS AND A TEAM POLICING STRUCTURE RATHER THAN A HIGHLY ORGANIZED AND SPECIALIZED POLICE FORCE. THIS ARTICLE BRIEFLY DESCRIBES THE REORGANIZATION EFFORTS OF ONE SUCH JURISDICTION - THE MULTNOMAH COUNTY DIVISION OF PUBLIC SAFETY (MCDPS). PARTICULAR ATTENTION IS GIVEN TO THE CHANGES THIS RESTRUCTURING HAS MADE IN THE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICES OF THE DEPARTMENT. DURING THE EARLY MONTHS OF 1975, THE MCDPS REVIEWED ITS OPERATIONS, AND NOTED THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF A SPECIALIZED INVESTIGATIVE STRUCTURE. WHILE THIS STRUCTURE FACILITATED DEFINITE PLACING OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR INVESTIGATION, HELPED TO DEVELOP SKILL IN THE INVESTIGATIVE TASK, PROMOTED HIGH COHESIVENESS WITHIN THE UNIT, AND LEFT THE PATROL OFFICER FREE FOR PREVENTIVE PATROL ACTIVITIES, SEVERAL DISADVANTAGES WERE NOTED AS WELL, INTRA-AGENCY COMMUNICATION DECREASED AS SPECIALIZATION INCREASED. SPECIALIZATION HURT THE MORALE OF THE PATROL OFFICER, AND CAUSED AN INCREASE IN ADMINISTRATIVE LOAD AND PAPERWORK. WITH THE CONVERSION TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD TEAM POLICING MODEL, THE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICES WERE RESTRUCTURED SO THAT THE GENERAL POLICE OFFICER WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION OF ALL CRIMES DISPATCHED TO HIM AND THE FOLLOW-UP INVESTIGATION OF ALL ASSIGNED CASES. THE INVESTIGATION TEAM WAS CONSIDERABLY REDUCED AND REORGANIZED. THE REVISED FUNCTIONS OF THE DETECTIVE UNIT AND THE GENERALIST INVESTIGATOR ARE DESCRIBED. SEVERAL SIGNIFICANT ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES WHICH HAVE RESULTED FROM THIS RESTRUCTURING ARE ALSO NOTED. FOR EXAMPLE, IT WAS FOUND THAT POLICE OFFICERS SEEM TO HAVE INCREASED MOTIVATION UNDER THE GENERALIST STRUCTURE. THE PATROL OFFICERS ARE ABLE TO FILTER OUT CASES WHICH HAVE LITTLE PROBABILITY OF RESOLUTION, AND DETECTIVES CAN SPEND MORE TIME INVESTIGATING MAJOR COMPLEX CRIMES. THE SEVERAL DISADVANTAGES WHICH BECAME APPARENT WERE AGENCY MORALE AS OFFICERS WERE TRANSFERRED OUT OF SPECIALIZED INVESTIGATIVE UNITS, HEAVIER ADMINISTRATIVE LOADS ON THE FIELD SUPERVISORS, AND A REDUCED AMOUNT OF TIME AVAILABLE FOR PATROL BY THE GENERALIST OFFICERS. (SNI ABSTRACT)