Analysis of the socio-psychological climate of the police teams of the internal affairs bodies of the Russian Federation is an important source of information to assess the readiness of employees to perform service tasks. The problem that initiates the study is the discrepancy between the methods for measuring the climate and the specifics of interaction of employees, the nature and conditions of their work activities. In a domestic social psychology there are dozens of approaches to the understanding of the essence of this phenomenon, methods of its diagnosis and ensuring an optimal climate in the team, which significantly complicates the activities of heads and psychologists of departments of internal affairs. The article is devoted to reconceptualization of the phenomenon of social-psychological climate in law-enforcement bodies teams as in modern conditions the necessity of concrete definition of the phenomenon is evident, without which the tools and procedures used for its measurement cannot be defined and improved. The authors name the key reasons that require in-depth theoretical study of the climate of service teams. The research methods are cognitive methods of information processing (generalization, systematization and classification), which allow to characterize and synthesize the specifics of the study of the sociopsychological climate. Results. The article identifies the basic structural elements of the phenomenon under study and describes the main directions of understanding the phenomenon of social and psychological climate. Their specification allows us to adequately assess the modality and level of psycho-social climate, identify the causes of its deterioration in a particular unit and provide adequate psychological support.