NCJ Number
72107
Date Published
1977
Length
235 pages
Annotation
This research evaluates the effects of internship-experiential learning programs upon police role perception and dogmatism-authoritarianism levels found in students participating in the program through a pre-post testing design.
Abstract
The testing instrument consisted of the Project Star Role Expectation Questionnaire (PSREQ) and Rokeach's F-Scale (Dogmatism). Forty-eight sophomore level, pre-service, male law enforcement students were randomly assigned to an experimental group and to a control group. Both groups were administered the PSREQ and the F-Scale at both the beginning and the end of the semester. The students in the experimental group participated in the Criminal Justice Internship Program, while those in the control group did not. The Criminal Justice Internship Program requires 15 hours per week in field placement as participant-observers in various police departments and in seminars to discuss experiences and the required reading list. Results indicated that those students participating in the internship program differed with respect to role perception from students in the control group. Further analysis also indicated that the experimental students had a more realistic perspective on the police role when comparing their responses to the national norms established by the PSREQ than did the control students. Also, the experimental students' level of dogmatism-authoritarianism rose to that of the norm for in-service police officers after they had participated in the internship program. Levels of dogmatism-authoritarianism for the control students did not change significantly and were at the national average for non-police. Survey instruments, tabular data, and over 145 references are appended. (Author abstract modified)