Research for Practice

1 Research forPracticeFactors That Influence Public Opinion of the Department of JusticeOffice of Justice ProgramsNational Institute of JusticeJUNE 03 This and other publications and productsof the Department of Justice, Officeof Justice Programs, National Instituteof Justice can be found on the WorldWide Web at the following site:Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Department of JusticeOffice of Justice Programs810 Seventh Street , DC 20531 John AshcroftAttorney GeneralDeborah J. DanielsAssistant Attorney GeneralSarah V. HartDirector, National Institute of JusticeFindings and conclusions of the Research reported here are those ofthe authors and do not reflect the official position or policies of Department of 03 Factors That Influence Public Opinion of the PoliceAcknowledgmentsThis Research was supported by NationalInstitute of Justice grantnumber 96 IJ CX authors would liketo acknowledge the aidof Lois Mock, NIJ grantmonitor; Jack Greene,who served as consultantto the project.

2 And Gar-rett Zimmon, Dan Koenig,and many other membersof the Los AngelesPolice 197925iiRESEARCH FOR Practice / JUNE 03 Police can improve public opin-ion by increasing their informalcontacts with citizens. Accord-ing to a survey of Los Angelesresidents opinions of policejob performance and officers demeanor, police can increaseresidents approval of their jobperformance by participatingin community meetings,increasing officers visibility inneighborhoods, and talkingwith citizens. Such informalcontacts had a positive impacton job approval ratings evenwhen other factors associatedwith lower approval ratings such as residents perceptionsthat their neighborhoods arecrime ridden, dangerous, anddisorderly were present.

3 Informal contacts with policealso lessened the negativeimpact of residents formalcontacts with police (such asbeing arrested or questionedby police). Residents withboth types of contact report-ed higher approval ratingsthan residents with only for-mal contact. Race and ethnici-ty were not found to be asimportant as neighborhoodcharacteristics or personalcontacts in determining thepublic s satisfaction withpolice, although race and eth-nicity did seem to play a rolein residents assessment ofofficers demeanor. Themedia were also found toABOUT THIS STUDY have little influence on publicopinion of the did the surveyreveal? Residents perception ofthe level of crime and dis-order in their neighborhoodwas a significant factorshaping their opinion ofthe police.

4 Residents with informalpolice contacts had morepositive perceptions thanresidents with formalcontacts. Residents opinion of po-lice performance did notvary by race or ethnicity indisorderly neighborhoods. Media did not affect resi-dents approval of policejob performance or theirperception of officers were the survey s limitations?Although care was taken tosurvey residents from diversecommunities in Los Angeles,the four areas covered by thesurvey are not, nor were theyintended to be, representativeof the entire THAT INFLUENCE PUBLIC OPINION OF THE POLICEC heryl Maxson, Karen Hennigan, and David C. SloaneAbout the AuthorsCheryl Maxson, ,is an assistant professorin the Department ofCriminology, Law, andSociety at the Universityof California at Hennigan, ,is a Research assistantprofessor in psychologyat the University ofSouthern California(USC).

5 Both authors areresearch associates in theSocial Science ResearchInstitute at USC. DavidC. sloane , , is anassociate professor inthe School of Policy,Planning, and Devel-opment at new study has found thatneighborhood characteristicsand interactions with policeare the factors that most influ-ence public opinion of thepolice. The study, conductedin Los Angeles, found thatresidents from neighborhoodsperceived to be crime ridden,dangerous, and disorderlywere less likely to approve ofthe contrast, resi-dents who had informal per-sonal contact with policewere more likely to expressapproval. Race and ethnicity,factors cited as influential inother studies, were not foundto be as important as commu-nity disorder in determiningthe public s satisfaction withpolice.

6 Race and ethnicitydid affect assessment ofpolice demeanor. The mediawere found to have littleinfluence on public opinionof the opinions inLos AngelesResearchers mailed a surveyto residents in four diverseareas of Los Angeles. (SeeFactors That Influence PublicOpinion of the Police Study Background andMethodology. ) Using aseries of questions, theymeasured two aspects ofpolice performance: Job meas-ure of job approval wasbased on a six-questionscale modified from Sko-gan s work in Chicago,which asked residentshow well police in theirneighborhood preventcrime, help victims, andsolve Officer of officerdemeanor was formedfrom five questionsthat asked respondentswhether police were re-spectful, trustworthy, fair,or helpful and how con-cerned they study focused on fourfactors that were thought toinfluence public opinion ofthe police.

7 Residents perceptions ofthe levels of disorder andPrevious Research suggeststhat an individual s opinionof the police is filteredthrough these factors, butrelatively little is known abouthow they work together toinfluence perceptionsof police of theneighborhoodAs might be expected,residents expressed less 2 Research FOR Practice / JUNE 03crime in their neighbor-hood and the neighbors sense of mutual trust andresponsibility. Residents formal andinformal contacts withpolice and prior experienceas victims of violent andproperty crime. Residents demographiccharacteristics. The role of the media. STUDYBACKGROUND ANDMETHODOLOGYArea DescriptionThe study sample was taken from four of theLos Angeles Police Department s (LAPD s) 18geographic areas.

8 The areas were chosen toreflect contrasting rates of reported propertyand violent crimes and demographic profiles,especially income and race/ethnicity. Onerepresentative from each of the LAPD s fouradministrative bureaus was included. However,the four areas are not, nor were they intendedto be, representative of the entire city. Area Ais in South Central. It has one of thehighest violent crime rates in the city, morethan three times higher than any of the otherareas surveyed. In the 1990 census, area Ahad approximately 150,000 residents, whowere 55 percent black and 40 percent have moved into this traditionallyblack area in increasing numbers. Eighty-sixpercent of residents reported householdincomes below $45,000 and 43 percentbelow $15,000.

9 Area Bis just north and east of downtown. Ithas the second highest violent crime rate,fueled by the largest gang population in thecity, with more than 7,000 gang members inapproximately 40 gangs. Area B, however,has the lowest property crime rate amongthe four areas sampled. Area B is primarilyHispanic (84 percent) and low income, withmany residents living in multigenerationalhouseholds. In the 1990 census, 80 percentof residents reported household incomesbelow $45,000 and 32 percent below $15,000. Area Cis on the city s west side. It has a rel-atively low violent crime rate but the highestproperty crime rate among the surveyedareas. Area C has approximately 200,000 res-idents and is ethnically diverse (61 percentwhite, 22 percent Latino, 10 percent Asian,and 6 percent black).

10 In the 1990 census,59 percent of residents reported householdincomes below $45,000 and 17 percent be-low $15,000. Area Dis in the San Fernando Valley. It has avery low violent crime rate and the secondlowest reported property crime rate (higheronly than area B). Area D is primarily white3 FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE PUBLIC OPINION OF THE POLICE(73 percent) with growing Latino (17 percent)and Asian (8 percent) populations. Residentsof area D have higher incomes than those inother areas surveyed: 50 percent reportedhousehold incomes above $45,000 and 26percent above $75,000 in the 1990 MethodsResidential addresses were obtained from city-wide utility service lists that were coded to per-mit selection of addresses within the fourgeographic areas.