This paper presents a description of police research problems in such fashion that it could be generalized to other types of organizations. A two-dimensional taxonomy of problems in conducting psychological research in police departments is discussed. The first dimension concerns generality-uniqueness of the problem, relative to formal organizations in general, and includes common problems, similar problems, and unique problems. The second dimension discusses the source of the problem, and includes: (1) nature of the psychologist-researcher; (2) nature of the police officer; (3) nature of the psychologist-police officer interaction; and (4) nature of the police organization and police role. (Author/JLL)