Contemporary ideas about community policing arose from reconsideration of police strategies and practices in the 1960's and 1970's. Community policing is regarded as a strategy for improving relations between the police and the public while strengthening police effectiveness in preventing and controlling crime. The four elements of community policing are the organization of community-based crime prevention, the reorientation of patrol activities to emphasize nonemergency servicing, increased police accountability to local communities, and the decentralization of command. It thus involves major changes in the customary roles of the police. Thus, it raises concerns about the implications of thorough integration of the police into the community. In addition, the vitality of community policing may depend on social structure and be greatest in affluent, educated, middle-class communities. Chapter reference notes.