Exploring the Limits of Collaboration in Community Policing: A Direct Comparison of Police and Citizen Views

• NCJ Number: 223537
• Journal: Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management Volume: 31 Issue: 2 Dated: 2008 Pages: 271-291
• Author(s): John Liederbach; Eric J. Fritsch; David L. Carter; Andra Bannister
• Date Published: 2008
• Length: 21 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

In a jurisdiction largely influenced by the community-oriented policing movement (Fort Worth, TX), this study compared citizens' and police officers' views on the following issues: the relative importance of crime problems in the jurisdiction, the value of community-policing programs, overall satisfaction with the department's performance, and strategies designed to improve the department's performance.

Abstract

The study found that officers and citizens differed significantly in their assessment of the importance of specific crime problems in the jurisdiction, the value of community policing programs, the degree to which they were satisfied with the department's performance, and their assessment of improvement strategies. Residents generally were satisfied with the community-oriented approach of the police, and they tended to value the specific community-oriented programs that have been developed and implemented over the last three decades. On the other hand, street-level officers are still apparently resistant to many aspects of community-oriented policing compared to citizens. This suggests that many officers are not yet convinced that community policing can work in addressing crime. Study data were collected as part of a larger comprehensive operational analysis of the Forth Worth Police Department conducted between January 2001 and February 2002. The current data were derived exclusively from those items that were common to both the survey of police officers and a telephone survey of a representative sample of Fort Worth residents. These common items used closed-ended Likert scales in assessing respondents' views. The citizen sample was fairly representative of the adult population of Fort Worth. A total of 651 officer surveys were completed and returned, resulting in a 65.6-percent response rate. 6 tables, 4 notes, and 63 references