The Blue Perspective: Police Perception of Police-Community Relations
Loading...
Links to Files
Permanent Link
Author/Creator
Author/Creator ORCID
Date
2018-01-01
Type of Work
Department
Sociology and Anthropology
Program
Sociology, Applied
Citation of Original Publication
Rights
Distribution Rights granted to UMBC by the author.
Access limited to the UMBC community. Item may possibly be obtained via Interlibrary Loan thorugh a local library, pending author/copyright holder's permission.
This item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
Access limited to the UMBC community. Item may possibly be obtained via Interlibrary Loan thorugh a local library, pending author/copyright holder's permission.
This item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
Abstract
The increasing number of unarmed black men killed by police has flooded the national spotlight, generating scrutiny and outrage. This development has increased the focus of research and policy on effective policing strategies and their effect on police-community relations. This study seeks to understand police officers’ perceptions of the community they serve as well as their perceptions of how community members view law enforcement officers. The research is based on in-person interviews with six officers in the Baltimore and Washington, DC area. The interviews focus on the following topics: 1) perceptions of neighborhood crime conduct, 2) perceptions of neighborhood safety and factors to crime, 3) perception of communities’ attitudes towards police, and 4) collective efficacy. The results indicate that for this particular sample "The Blue Perspective,” is actually a "black and brown” perspective of minority officers’ experience. These officers’ viewpoints are not drastically different from civilians in the communities they police.