POLICE IMAGE - AN EXPLORATORY STUDY

• NCJ Number: 49840
• Journal: Journal of Communication Volume: 20 Issue: 4 Dated: (DECEMBER 1970) Pages: 370-374
• Author(s): W D BROOKS; G W FRIEDRICH
• Date Published: 1970
• Length: 5 pages
• Corporate Author: Annenberg School Press; International Communication Assoc
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

INTERVIEWS WERE USED TO DISCOVER THE EFFECT OF FOUR VARIABLES ON POLICE IMAGE: RACE, SEX, AGE, AND TYPE OF COMMUNICATION WITH POLICEMEN.

Abstract

THE 231 SUBJECTS FOR THIS STUDY CONSISTED OF 85 BLACKS AND 146 WHITES SELECTED FROM RESIDENTS OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS, AND LAFAYETTE, INDIANA, DURING THE 1968-1969 ACADEMIC YEAR. IN GATHERING DATA, THE INTERVIEWERS UTILIZED BOTH AN INTERVIEW GUIDE WHICH SPECIFIED THE TOPICS AND SUBTOPICS TO BE COVERED AND A SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL MEASURE OF POLICE IMAGE WHICH CONSISTED OF 10 BIPOLAR ADJECTIVES. NONPARAMETRIC STATISTICAL TESTS WERE USED TO TEST FOR SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES: THE MANN-WHITNEY U TEST FOR THE TWO-SAMPLE CASE AND THE KRUSKAL-WALLIS ONE-WAY ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE TEST FOR THE K-SAMPLE CASE. THE .01 LEVEL WAS USED FOR ALL TESTS OF SIGNIFICANCE. RESULTS SHOWED THAT THE VARIABLE BEST DIFFERENTIATING THE SUBJECTS' IMAGE OF POLICEMEN IS RACE, SINCE BLACKS VIEW POLICE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE NEGATIVELY THAN DO WHITES. WHILE FEMALES PERCEIVE POLICE MORE FAVORABLY THAN DO MALES, THE DIFFERENCE IS NOT SIGNIFICANT. THE INFLUENCE OF AGE IS ALSO NOT SIGNIFICANT, ALTHOUGH AGE INCREASE TENDED TO CORRELATE WITH MORE FAVORABLE POLICE IMAGE. BLACK MALES AND FEMALES AGREE ON POLICE IMAGE MORE THAN DO WHITE MALES AND FEMALES, WITH THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHITE MALES AND FEMALES BEING SIGNIFICANT -- FEMALES HAVING THE MORE FAVORABLE IMAGE OF POLICEMEN. STATISTICAL TESTS REVEALED THAT BOTH TYPE OF CONTACT WITH POLICE AND ARREST RECORD SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTED THE POLICE IMAGE HELD BY A SUBJECT. SUBJECTS WHO REPORTED DIRECT PERSONAL CONTACT AS THE SOURCE OF THEIR POLICE IMAGE AND THOSE WHO REPORTED NO ARREST RECORD HAD SIGNIFICANTLY MORE FAVORABLE IMAGES OF POLICE THAN DID THEIR COUNTERPARTS. IT WAS ALSO FOUND THAT BLACK SUBJECTS WHO WERE CATEGORIZED AS 'DIRECT CONTACT-ARRESTED' HAD MORE FAVORABLE IMAGES OF POLICE THAN DID THOSE CATEGORIZED AS 'INDIRECT CONTACT'. IT IS CONSIDERED THAT THESE FINDINGS SUGGEST THE PROFITABILITY OF INCREASING DIRECT COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE PUBLIC. DATA FROM THE STUDY ARE INCLUDED. (RCB)