Student Perceptions of Police Canines at the University of Central Florida

• NCJ Number: 199998
• Author(s): Charles Mesloh M.P.A; Mark Henych M.S.; Kevin Pate B.S.
• Date Published: April 2003
• Length: 20 pages
• Corporate Author: University of Central Florida
• Sale Source: University of Central Florida
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This report offers findings from a study of student perceptions of a University of Central Florida community policing program known as “K-9 Lite,” in which police dogs are an integral part of the public relations aspect of policing.

Abstract

Surveys from 598 University of Central Florida students were collected in order to assess student perceptions of the use of police dogs on campus. Seventy percent of participants viewed the use of the canine unit as an effective deterrence to drugs on campus, while 60 percent of students reported feeling more secure with the knowledge that there was a bomb dog on campus. Sixty-seven percent of participants believed that the canine unit reduced crime on campus, while 83 percent of participants reported having physically seen a police dog on campus. Less than 12 percent of participants considered canine units a waste of money and 73 percent of participants reported that they would be willing to pay out of their own pocket to fund a campus drug dog. Despite the positive responses to the presence of police dogs on campus, slightly less than 50 percent of the participants were aware of the existence of a K-9 unit on campus.