Shaping Citizen Perceptions of Police Legitimacy: A Randomized Field Trial of Procedural Justice

Exploring the relationship between procedural justice and citizen perceptions of police is a well‐trodden pathway. Studies show that when citizens perceive the police acting in a procedurally just manner—by treating people with dignity and respect, and by being fair and neutral in their actions—they view the police as legitimate and are more likely to comply with directives and cooperate with police. Our article examines both the direct and the indirect outcomes of procedural justice policing, tested under randomized field trial conditions. We assess whether police can enhance perceptions of legitimacy during a short, police‐initiated and procedurally just traffic encounter and how this single encounter shapes general views of police. Our results show significant differences between the control and experimental conditions: Procedurally just traffic encounters with police (experimental condition) shape citizen views about the actual encounter directly and general orientations toward the police relative to business‐as‐usual traffic stops in the control group. The theorized model is supported by our research, demonstrating that the police have much to gain from acting fairly during even short encounters with citizens.     

The Salience of Social Contextual Factors in Appraisals of Police Interactions with Citizens: A Randomized Factorial Experiment

Objectives

Prior research indicates that public assessments of the manner in which the police exercise their authority are a key antecedent of judgments about the legitimacy of the police. In this study, the importance of context in influencing people’s assessment of police wrongdoing is examined.

Methods

A randomized factorial experiment was used to test how respondents perceive and evaluate police–citizens interactions along a range of types of situations and encounters. 1,361 subjects were surveyed on factors hypothesized to be salient influences on how citizens perceive and evaluate citizen interactions with police. Subjects viewed videos of actual police–citizen encounters and were asked for their evaluations of these observed encounters. Contextual primes were used to focus subjects on particular aspects of the context within which the encounter occurs.

Results

Structural equation models revealed that social contextual framing factors, such as the climate of police–community relations and the legality of the stop that led to the encounter, influence citizen appraisals of police behavior with effects comparable in size to and even larger than demographic variables such as education, race, and income.

Conclusions

These results suggest that the understandings and perceptions that people bring to a situation are important determinants of their assessment of police fairness. The police can positively influence citizen interpretations of police actions by striving to create a climate of positive police–community relationships in cities.     

Suspicion formation among police officers: an international literature review

Recent research on racial profiling has renewed attention on how police officers develop suspicions about citizens, and how these suspicions influence the official behavior of police. In order to guide the current research, a review of the wealth of existing qualitative and quantitative research on this topic is necessary. This literature review examines the existing international research in psychology, sociology, and criminology on police officer development of suspicion. It also lays out a framework for organizing the findings with four broad methods of suspicion development: stereotypical perceptions about typical criminal offenders, prior knowledge about specific citizens; incongruent circumstances, and suspicious nonverbal cues. It concludes with the few studies linking officer suspicions to official police behavior.     

Procedural justice in policing: the first phase of an Australian longitudinal study of officer attitudes and intentions

Despite the prominent role that procedural justice has taken in policing research, we know surprisingly little about police perceptions of procedural justice as an effective tool in their encounters with members of the public. In this study, we start with a focus on the perceptions of police recruits in a major police service, exploring their perceptions of procedural justice and its role in policing. Using data from a questionnaire of 450 police recruits in the early stages of their initial training, we find that orientations supportive of procedural justice significantly predict reported intentions to use procedural justice approaches in interacting with others, as well as the prioritization of procedural justice responses to a typical policing encounter (traffic violation). We also find that belief in an obligation to obey the law is significantly associated with perceived procedural justice outcomes. We argue that early supportive orientations towards procedural justice may be important in understanding police officers’ future interactions with members of the public, promoting positive evaluations of justice among citizens, and minimizing the risk of coercive encounters involving officer use of force.     

Procedural justice, routine encounters and citizen perceptions of police: main findings from the Queensland Community Engagement Trial (QCET)

Objectives

To test, under randomized field trial conditions, the impact of police using the principles of procedural justice during routine encounters with citizens on attitudes towards drink-driving, perceptions of compliance, and their satisfaction with the police.

Methods

We conducted the first randomized field trial??the ??Queensland Community Engagement Trial?? (QCET)??to test the impact of police engaging with citizens by operationalizing the key ingredients of procedural justice (neutrality, citizen participation, respect, and trustworthy motives) in a short, high-volume police?Ccitizen encounter. We randomly allocated 60 roadside Random Breath Testing (RBT) operations to control (business-as-usual) and experimental (procedural justice) conditions. Driver surveys were used to measure the key outcomes: attitudes towards drinking and driving, satisfaction with police and perceptions of compliance.

Results

Citizen perceptions of the encounter revealed that the experimental treatment was delivered as planned. We also found significant differences between the experimental and control groups on all key outcome measures: drivers who received the experimental RBT encounter were 1.24 times more likely to report that their views on drinking and driving had changed than the control group; experimental respondents reported small but higher levels of compliance (d?=?.07) and satisfaction (d?=?.18) with police during the encounter than did their control group counterparts.

Conclusions

Our results show that the way citizens perceive the police can be influenced by the way in which police interact with citizens during routine encounters, and demonstrate the positive benefits of police using the principles of procedural justice. Our study was limited by the use of paper-only surveys and low response rate. We also recognize that the experiment setting (RBT road blocks) is limiting and non-reflective of the wider set of routine police?Ccitizen encounters. Future research should be undertaken, using experimental methods, to replicate our field operationalization of procedural justice in different types of police?Ccitizen encounters.     

Armed,but too dangerous? Factors associated with citizen support for the militarization of the police

Images of police officers riding in armored vehicles and carrying military-grade weapons have become part of the public consciousness following the events in Ferguson, Missouri and several other high-profile police–citizen encounters. Although a great deal of research has investigated how and why US citizens perceive the police in various ways, almost no empirical work has asked how citizens perceive the militarization of the police. The current study analyzes data from a survey of 1005 US citizens to identify characteristics that are related to support for the use of military weapons and vehicles by local police departments. The results indicate that several demographic factors and perceptions of crime and the police are significantly related with citizen support for the militarization of the police. The implications of this research are discussed.     

Women Police Officers and the Use of Coercion

Abstract

Despite numerous advances in the last thirty years, women police officers continue to face acceptance issues in a male-dominated occupation. Qualitative accounts of policewomen have noted that many of the integration barriers stem from traditional assumptions about police work, much of which revolves around the cultural mandate to display one's coercive authority over citizens. Female officers are often perceived as unwilling (or lacking in ability) to use coercion when encountering citizens. Unfortunately, little empirical evidence is available to support this claim, as gender studies that specifically examine the use of coercion have tended to focus on excessive force. Using data collected as part of a systematic social observation study in Indianapolis, Indiana, and St. Petersburg, Florida, this research examines both verbal and physical coercion that policewomen use in day-to-day encounters with citizens. The results of this study challenge one of the most fundamental stereotypes levied against women police officers. Contrary to traditional assumptions, female police officers (compared to their male counterparts) are not reluctant to use coercive force, and examinations of both verbal and physical force reveal few differences in not only the prevalence of each behavior, but also in the commonly associated explanatory factors. The article concludes with the implications of these     

Determinants of Citizens’ Perceptions of Police–Community Cooperation in India: Implications for Community Policing

In this study, we examine citizens?? perceptions of police?Ccommunity relationships in India. More specifically, in this exploratory study, we examine the extent to which factors such as general satisfaction with police services, police professionalism, feeling of safety, and perception of police integrity all explain the public confidence in police?Ccitizen relationships. Those who are generally satisfied with police like to work with police and view police?Ccommunity relationships positively. Further, we find that those who feel police are fair in dealing with citizens, irrespective of social status, and those who feel more safe in their communities are those who are most willing to work with police.     

Perceptions of community policing in a small town

Much of the information regarding community policing is based upon research conducted in large urban areas. In contrast, this article utilizes survey data to examine resident perceptions of community-policing practices in a small southern town. Low response rates from minority citizens, along with the negative impressions reported by minority participants, point to race as a major concern. Black respondents are less willing to trust the police, express greater dissatisfaction with the police, and grade the police significantly lower than do white participants. Interestingly, community-policing measures do not appear to enhance perceptions of the police. Suggestions for future research are offered.     

Judging Police Misconduct: "Street-Level" versus Professional Policing

In their interactions with citizens, police officers are prohibited from (1) using unnecessary Force, (2) Abusing their authority, (3) speaking Discourteously, or (4) using Offensive language, all captured by the acronym FADO. However, acts of police misconduct are complex social phenomena that involve both following legal guidelines and responding to extralegal or mitigating circumstances. Using a factorial survey of police‐civilian interactions that introduce various dimensions of FADO and surrounding circumstances, respondents are asked to rate from zero to ten the seriousness of police misconduct in an encounter. Findings show that respondents' judgments of the seriousness of misconduct consider both legal and extralegal dimensions. On the legal side of the ledger, officers' unnecessary use of force and use of offensive language significantly increase judgments of serious misconduct; on the extralegal side of the ledger, civilians' confrontational demeanor significantly reduces judgments of serious misconduct. The findings suggest that citizens expect officers to behave professionally, or by the book, but with a recognition that “street‐level” discretion has a place in an officer's toolkit. Citizens' expectations that street‐level discretion has its place is also demonstrated by findings for the dimension abuse of authority: Abuse or threatening behavior by officers is not a significant predictor of serious police misconduct. In addition, characteristics of the respondents explain propensities to observe different degrees of police misconduct. Controlling for the social status, political orientation, and prior experience of respondents with the police, we find that (1) blacks rate police misconduct significantly higher than their white counterparts, and (2) liberals rate police misconduct significantly higher than their conservative counterparts. Differences in judgments by blacks and whites and by liberals and conservatives concerning judgments of police misconduct have important implications for the legitimacy of police authority.     

Challenging the ‘invariance’ thesis: procedural justice policing and the moderating influence of trust on citizens’ obligation to obey police

Objectives

This paper examines the effects of a procedural justice policing intervention on citizens’ feelings of obligation to obey police. It examines whether the efficacy of procedural justice on citizens’ obligation to obey police may be contingent on citizens’ level of trust in police during a police–citizen encounter.

Methods

This research draws on survey data from the Queensland Community Engagement Trial (QCET). QCET was a randomized controlled field trial implemented by the Queensland Police Service. The trial exposed citizens to either a procedural justice experience (experimental condition) or standard police practice (control condition) during a random roadside stop. Survey responses were received from 1107 drivers in the experimental condition and 1655 drivers in the control condition.

Results

Compared to the control condition, the procedural justice condition yielded higher levels of trust in the police officer conducting the roadside stop. No differences in obligation to obey police were observed between the two conditions. Importantly, citizens’ level of trust in the officer moderated the effect of the intervention on obligation to obey police. Specifically, the procedural justice condition had a negative effect on obligation to obey for those reporting low trust in police. For those high in trust, the procedural justice intervention had a slight but insignificant positive effect on obligation to obey.

Conclusions

The findings suggest that procedural justice effects can vary between individuals; specifically, the findings reveal that procedural justice interventions can sometimes be counter-productive, depending on the level of trust a citizen exhibits toward police during an encounter. Police agencies should therefore be aware of potential counter-productive effects when implementing procedural justice in the field.

     

Assessing the effects of body‐worn cameras on procedural justice in the Los Angeles Police Department*

In this article, we explore variations in procedural justice delivered in face‐to‐face encounters with citizens before and after the implementation of body‐worn cameras (BWCs). We draw on recent advances in the measurement of procedural justice using systematic social observation of police in field settings in the Los Angeles Police Department. Data collected on 555 police–citizen encounters are examined in bivariate and multivariate models exploring the primary hypothesis that BWCs affect procedural justice delivered by police directly and indirectly. Our results indicate that significant increases in procedural justice during police–citizen encounters were directly attributable to the effect of BWCs on police behavior as well as to the indirect effects on citizen disrespect and other variables. The implications for policy include explicit measurement and monitoring of procedural justice or elements such as officer discourtesy in departments adopting BWCs. Further research questions such as more detailed examination of citizens’ behavior changes under BWCs are also considered in the context of the findings.     

The Control of Police Powers

This article points to a frequent feature in debates about the control of the police. Aside from cultural and political characteristics in the last decades, policing has changed and at present it is going through a stage of rapid change. The author defines the historical roots of police in democracies. He places the police within the framework of the sovereign state, the administration, the judiciary and the citizens. The state's control of police powers is described in its interdependency with new demands on the part of citizens regarding micro (domestic sphere/neighbourhood/community) and macro (urban sphere/state/European) levels. On a European scale, the article provides an oversight over the existing network consisting of internal, administrative, parliamentarian, judiciary, and civil (non-government/social movements) control agencies and mechanisms. In its conclusions the concept of ethical standards is introduced as a means of effective high-quality police management.     

Public satisfaction with the South Korean Police: The effect of residential location in a rapidly industrializing nation

Recent years have witnessed growing research interest in citizen perceptions of the police. This was likely the result of the community policing movement, which sought to strengthen ties between citizens and the police, as well as to concerns about the legitimacy of the police. Most of this research focused on police agencies in the United States, and little research had been conducted on citizen perceptions of the police in Asian countries. This study sought to fill this void through an analysis of citizen perceptions of the police in South Korea. To address these issues, telephone interview survey data gathered from 11,500 randomly selected citizens were obtained in the rapidly industrializing country, South Korea. Several sets of multiple-regression models were estimated to assess the effect of urbanization, demographics, evaluations of police services, and perceived corruption on citizen satisfaction with police. The results suggested that citizens in small to mid-sized cities and large urban cities were less satisfied with police than were residents of rural areas. In addition, age, evaluations of police service, and perceptions of corruption were related to citizen satisfaction. The results were discussed in comparison to previous research in Asia and the United States and other Western countries.     

DEMEANOR OR CRIME? WHY “HOSTILE” CITIZENS ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE ARRESTED*

It is a criminological axiom that displays of hostility by citizens towards police officers directly increase the odds of arrest in police-citizen encounters. This axiom rests on nearly three decades of observational research of interactions between police officers and citizens. Two features of this work, however, raise questions about the validity of findings that citizen demeanor independently affects police arrest decisions. First, although demeanor is conceptually defined as legally permissible behavior, measures of demeanor often include criminal conduct. Second, criminal conduct is not controlled adequately when the effects of demeanor on arrest are estimated. In an analysis employing a demeanor measure that does not confound crime and that controls for crime more comprehensively, it is found that displays of hostility which violate no laws do not increase the likelihood of arrest in and of themselves. The implications of this finding are discussed.     

The verdict is in: how did they decide? Using drivers’ self-reported data to understand officers’ decision making during traffic stop encounters

ABSTRACT

In the United States, traffic stop is the most common form of police-citizen encounter, and for many citizens, it is the only way they will ever interact with the police. The frequency of traffic stop encounters has therefore attracted a significant research interest. In the past several years, researchers have attempted to explain the dynamics of these interactions, with the hope to change attitudes and influence policy formation. To supplement the efforts of previous researchers, the current effort analyzed self-reported data from citizens to understand police decision making at three decision points during traffic stop encounters. Specifically, the present study aims to answer three questions: what variables predict whether an officer will let a citizen go without doing anything or decide to do something? If the officer decides to do something, what influences the officer’s decision to choose an outcome over others? What are the drivers of use of force in traffic stop encounters? Results from the regression models suggest that reasons for the stop, verbal assault, officer and suspect characteristics are important predictors of police decision making behavior during traffic stop interaction. The findings have serious implications for developing better police-citizen relationships as well as improving public attitudes toward the local police.     

Unreported crimes,public dissatisfaction of police,and observed police misconduct in the Volgograd region,Russia: A research note

The paper examines the issue of widespread underreporting of crimes in the Volgograd region of Russia. The factors of public satisfaction with police, prior observed police misconduct, type of crime, and victim’s demographics are used to explain a victim’s decision to report crimes to the police. The research is based on a representative sample of Russian citizens conducted over a 9 year period in the Volgograd region (1998–2007) with a sample size of 1332 cases. The study concludes that prior observed police misconduct, especially the falsification of documents, is the strongest predictor of victims’ decisions to report crimes. The research holds critical implications for the ongoing reform of Russian police.     

Improving the Police Complaints System: Stakeholder Collaboration as a Vehicle for Systems Change

Systems change efforts seek to alter the status quo by shifting the form and function of a targeted system. Evaluation is a critical component, yet little research has examined a collaborative forum as a vehicle for change in the criminal justice system. Over 150 citizens and police were brought together to work collaboratively at improving a Canadian police complaints system. Using survey, participant observation, and focus group data, this study investigates the perceptions of this Forum as a vehicle for systems change in police oversight mechanisms. We find the Forum provided both opportunities for, and barriers to, collaborative systems change work. However, these findings need to be understood within the context of police-community relations as fear and mistrust of police influence problem definitions and potential solutions. Therefore, the collaboratives model is not a one-size-fits-all approach to systems change work in the criminal justice system.