Each stage has been characterized by the organizational strategies advocated by the major reformers of the time. These organizational strategies consist of the following seven elements: authorization, function, organization, demand, environment, tactics, and outcomes. Analysis of policing in terms of these elements clarifies how the shifts from one stage to the next have been stimulated by the revealed failures of the established approach and by the inability of old methods to meet the demands of a changing environment. Thus, the political era was characterized by close ties between police and politics; it lasted from the 1840's to the early 1900's. The reform strategy took hold during the 1930's, thrived during the 1950's and 1960's, began to erode during the late 1970's, and began to give way to the community policing strategy during the early and mid-1980's. Using the concepts of organizational strategy is useful not only for examining the current emergence of community policing but also for improving the understanding of police policymakers of the future. Notes.