Gender inequality still plays a huge role in today's society. Women make up only a small percentage of local law enforcement across the country. Women have been part of law enforcement since the 20th century, but have only been noticed in the last 40 years. In the 1970s, women rarely held law enforcement positions and when they did, they were primarily clerical positions. Even though the number of women in law enforcement has increased today, women still only represent around 13% of the (public) law enforcement workforce. Women can make such an impact in the field of law enforcement if given a fair chance, but they can face many problems when they do so. Some say women have no place, while others suggest they offer opportunities men might not realize. This is what makes it so difficult for women to succeed in this field; the fear of women entering a male-dominated field is what makes this one of the biggest debates in the criminology department, even today. Women face many challenges in law enforcement, but ultimately, they can only benefit law enforcement with the many skills and techniques they bring, very different from those men in this particular field. There are many possible reasons for the decline in the number of women. pursue a career in law enforcement. Although research shows that women can be just as effective as men, many still face unequal hiring practices, bias in selection processes, completion bias physical and bias in recruitment policies, which keeps the number of women in this field extremely low. Often, women are excluded from the selection process very early, following certain entry-level tests that favor upper body strength or...... middle of paper ....... " Emeraldinsight. Np, 2014. Johnson, Kevin. "Women enter top ranks of law enforcement." USA Today Gannett, August 14, 2013. Web April 8, 2014. Lonsway, Kim, Dr., Margret Moore, Penny Harrington, Eleanor Smeall, and Katherine Spiller, “Hiring and Retaining More Women: The Benefits for Law Enforcement Agencies,” National Center for Women and Policing, 2003. Web, April 9. 2014. McLeod, Saul. With Stress SimplyPsychology, 2009. Web, April 8, 2014. McLeod, Saul. “Stress Management – ​​Problem-Focused Stress Management,” 2010. Web, April 8, 2014. Public Sector Partnerships. and Private. Community Readiness. Public-Private Sector Partnerships for Community Preparedness, July 2013. Web. March 25, 2014 “The qualities that distinguish women leaders. " Yoke. Np and Web