The paper identifies major trends that have had or might have an impact on patrol officer behavior in the following decade, reviews relevant research and offers hypotheses as to the nature of these impacts, and suggests ways in which future research might assess the consequences of these trends for street-level practice focusing on implications for field observation. One area where major change has occurred is in the recruitment, development, and retention of police. Changes have occurred in the racial profile of police departments and the number of women on patrol. Also, American police are receiving more education and training, but there is debate over whether the quality of this training and education prepares police to meet the complex demands of modern policing. There has been an increase in both sworn and civilian police personnel per capita, but it is unclear whether this has increased service effectiveness. There has been little change in departmental structure and management style over the last decade as police agencies are still characterized by formality; specialization; and a centralized, paramilitary hierarchy. A number of alternatives to traditional patrol tactics have become popular in the last decade. They may be categorized as those designed to increase efficiency and those designed to enhance effectiveness. Other major trends in policing discussed in this article are technological changes; legal trends; the privatization of policing; and demographic, socioeconomic, and epidemiological trends. 3 notes and 155 references