Men and women in law enforcement use guns differently.
Officer-involved shootings are rare. Officers more commonly draw or display firearms without shooting, and doing so can substantially alter the course of an encounter. Depending on context, an officer who displays a firearm can powerfully influence citizen behavior and impact whether an encounter escalates or is resolved peacefully. Furthermore, publicized cases of police use of force can undermine trust in the police and perceptions of police legitimacy. Research suggests that female officers — who constitute less than 14% of sworn officers in state and local law enforcement agencies — may be less likely than male officers to display, point or fire a weapon, including in especially consequential encounters involving armed citizens. Although the size of these differences varies across studies, understanding how firearm use differs by officer sex may help improve officer-citizen interactions and reduce unnecessary escalation.
Firearm discharge and display
Officer-involved shootings, or incidents in which police officers fire their weapons, are the most extreme form of police use of force. In research across the United States using official, observational and survey data, female officers are generally less likely than men to be involved in fatal and nonfatal shootings, though the size of these differences varies across studies. For example, one study found that men were 3 times more likely than women to be involved in shootings. Differences in the use of force remain even when researchers account for factors like experience, assignment or neighborhood. This does not mean that female officers are unwilling to use force if necessary. In situations involving active shooters or other clear lethal threats, differences by sex are much less pronounced.
But focusing only on shootings ignores a more common and potentially more significant decision in police encounters, which is whether officers draw, unholster or point a firearm without firing it. Officers generally draw or point their firearms when they perceive a potential threat that could require the use of deadly force. Displaying a firearm sends a strong signal of authority and can change the dynamics of an encounter. It can calm some confrontations and aggravate others, especially if people view the display as unnecessary. While limited, existing research suggests that male officers are more likely than female officers to draw or point a firearm, even when the situation and level of risk are similar. For example, one study found that male officers were twice as likely as female officers to exhibit their guns overall and more than 3 times more likely to do so in cases in which an arrest was made.
Displaying and firing a gun are among the most serious actions an officer can take, but most police encounters involve lower levels of force. Looking at how officers use less-than-lethal weapons (e.g., Tasers) and hands-on tactics (e.g., takedowns, strikes) can help explain how decisions to employ higher levels of force are made. Across a relatively small body of research, studies suggest that male and female officers may differ in how they use force and other forms of control, especially when officers have more discretion over how to respond. These findings suggest that differences may emerge in the choices officers make before an encounter reaches the most serious levels of force. For example, one study estimated that female officers had 44% lower odds of using stuns/strikes and had 53% greater odds of using oleoresin capsicum (O.C.) spray, commonly known as pepper spray. Relatedly, the same study found that female officers reported less success gaining control or cooperation from subjects when using hands-on force and were more likely to be injured, which might explain their greater reliance on less-than-lethal weapons instead of hands-on tactics.
In situations involving active shooters or other clear lethal threats, differences by sex are much less pronounced.
To better understand these differences in use-of-force decision-making, it is especially useful to examine how responses to domestic violence calls differ by officer sex. These calls involve high-risk situations, strong emotions, broad use of officer discretion and interactions that can unfold differently depending on the sex of the officer and the people involved, all of which can significantly influence escalation and outcomes. They also make up a large share of police calls in many communities, from 15% to more than 50% of all calls. Importantly, domestic violence calls are more likely than many other calls to lead to officer injuries or deaths and often involve officers drawing or pointing their firearms.
Researchers have suggested that female officers can be particularly effective in handling volatile domestic violence calls involving intimate partners and family members despite this danger, due to sex differences in communication styles and de-escalation skills. One study found that female officers were more likely to use supportive actions, such as connecting survivors with social services, when compared to male officers. Another study found that teams with at least one female officer spent more time at the scene and were more likely to take less severe forms of domestic violence more seriously, which lowered the likelihood of a future call to the police for domestic violence within 30 days. These differences in how officers manage domestic violence calls do not necessarily translate into differences in their use of physical tactics or enforcement actions. When control is needed, female officers use physical restraint and make arrests at rates similar to male officers. Evidence on police responses to domestic violence therefore mirrors the broader use-of-force research. Male and female officers appear to differ most in the decisions they make before an encounter reaches the point where serious force is necessary, rather than in their willingness to use force when circumstances require it.
What drives these differences
Several factors may help explain why sex differences show up in firearm use and force escalation even though enforcement outcomes like arrest are often similar. One often-cited explanation refers to the way women and men are socialized, both into society and policing. Women who enter policing may differ from men in how they approach risk, conflict and communication. In tense or emotionally charged situations, female officers may rely more on communication early in an encounter and be slower to signal or threaten force. This may reflect how officers approach conflict and exercise discretion rather than differences in their willingness to use force when necessary.
Firearm use may also be shaped by how citizens interpret and react to officer behavior in real time. Citizen responses can vary by officer sex and often shift when a weapon is visible. Some research suggests that female officers are seen as less aggressive and more communicative, which may affect how encounters unfold.
But organizational culture may also limit these differences. Even if women enter the profession with different approaches to policing and are viewed differently by citizens, research suggests they may adapt to shared norms around force and firearms. For example, one agency-level study found no evidence that departments with higher proportions of female officers experienced fewer police-involved fatalities. This suggests that organizational culture may limit the extent to which officer sex alone influences firearm use.
In tense or emotionally charged situations, female officers may rely more on communication early in an encounter and be slower to signal or threaten force. This may reflect how officers approach conflict and exercise discretion rather than differences in their willingness to use force when necessary.
Implications for police agencies
Police departments can learn from the differences in how male and female officers manage encounters before serious force becomes necessary.
Evidence on sex and police-involved shootings points to the importance of early encounter management. Sex differences appear most often at decision points that involve threat signaling, communication and firearm display, rather than when circumstances already require serious force. Since decisions early in an encounter can shape what happens next, scenario-based training that emphasizes firearm restraint, control maintenance and communication under stress may help reduce unnecessary escalation across a wide range of encounters. Situational context also strongly shapes force-related outcomes, which makes training that improves judgment in dynamic, high-risk encounters especially beneficial.
How agencies structure deployment and patrol team composition could offer additional opportunities to reduce risk. Although research on patrol-team composition is limited, some evidence suggests that mixed-sex patrol teams can bring complementary interaction styles and may reduce escalation even when male officers take the lead in the encounter. Agencies can also identify the communication and de-escalation practices associated with lower rates of escalation and reinforce those practices through training and supervision. Considering officers’ demonstrated skills and behavior instead of relying on demographics alone may help agencies make more informed decisions about team assignment and deployment.
The research on officer sex and use of force remains limited, and findings are mixed across studies. Still, a recurring pattern is that male and female officers appear to differ most when officers have greater discretion over how to manage an encounter. The differences appear to lie in how officers manage encounters before serious force becomes necessary, including their use of communication, lower-level tactics and firearm display — not simply a lower willingness among female officers to use force.
For agencies, these findings have implications beyond efforts to increase female representation. They also point to the importance of identifying and reinforcing behaviors associated with reducing unnecessary escalation and improving safety. Training and supervision can reinforce communication, de-escalation and sound decision-making under stress, especially in encounters where officers have greater discretion in how they respond.
