EACH INTERVIEW CONTAINED FOUR IDENTIFIABLE PARTS. THE FIRST SECTION INVOLVED PRESENTING SUBJECTS WITH SELECTED QUALITIES AND ASKING THEM TO RATE THE EXTENT TO WHICH EACH QUALITY IS IMPORTANT TO THE PROFESSIONAL ROLE OF POLICE OFFICERS. THE SECOND SECTION ALLOWED SUBJECTS TO ADD ANY ADDITIONAL QUALITIES THEY FELT WERE IMPORTANT. THE THIRD SECTION REQUESTED SUBJECTS TO LIST SOME QUALITIES THAT ARE DEFINITIVELY UNDESIRABLE IN IDEAL OR MODEL POLICE OFFICERS. THE FINAL SECTION FOCUSED ON THE TYPES OF EXPERIENCE SUBJECTS IN SOCIAL GROUPS HAD WITH POLICE OFFICERS. SOCIAL GROUPS INCLUDED SHOPPERS IN A WHITE MIDDLE-CLASS NEIGHBORHOOD, PERSONS CONTACTED IN A LAUNDROMAT, PERSONS SITTING IN CIRCULATION AREAS OF A SHOPPING CENTER, AND CONVENIENCE STORE CLERKS. FOUR GROUPS WERE CLASSIFIED AS DEVIANT SAMPLES, INCLUDING HOMOSEXUALS, EX-ADDICTS, PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS, AND PERSONS WITH ALCOHOL ABUSE PROBLEMS. THE COMPOSITE STUDY SAMPLE CONTAINED 134 ADULT MEN AND WOMEN, OF WHOM 114 WERE NONPOLICE SUBJECTS. DESIRABLE QUALITIES CITED BY MOST RESPONDENTS WERE INTEGRITY, PHYSICAL QUALITIES, DECISIONMAKING SKILLS, SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE, JOB SKILLS, LACK OF PREJUDICE, AND POSITIVE EMOTIONAL QUALITIES. UNDESIRABLE QUALITIES INVOLVED PREJUDICE, DISHONESTY, THE ABUSE OF LEGAL POWER, PHYSICAL ABUSIVENESS, POOR APPEARANCE, AN OFFENSIVE INTERACTION STYLE, A LACK OF JUDGMENT, AND POOR JOB PERFORMANCE. IN GENERAL, POLICE OFFICERS FOCUSED ON DECISIVENESS AND VARIOUS JOB-SPECIFIC TECHNICAL SKILLS. SOCIAL GROUPS, ON THE OTHER HAND, TENDED TO SUPPLEMENT THESE QUALITIES WITH HUMANISTIC IDEAS RELATED TO INTERPERSONAL EFFECTIVENESS. SUPPORTING DATA ARE PROVIDED. (DEP)