30th Annual Student Research Conference
Liberal Arts College Students Perceptions of Police
Parker V. Willis
Dr. Anton Daughters and Dr. Paul Shapiro, Faculty Mentors
This study examines college students' perceptions of the police. It focuses on how 1) personal interactions with the police and 2) negative media portrayals shape those perceptions. Data was collected using a 23-question survey given to 90 college-age students. Important findings included the following: despite exposure to negative media portrayals of the police, perceptions of police changed very little; and those with positive personal interactions had a more positive perception of police. The study also found that if respondents felt as if they or someone close to them had been victimized by the police, they were much less satisfied with the police in general.
Keywords: Police, College, Perception
Topic(s):Sociology
Justice Systems
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 211-1
Location: VH 1236
Time: 9:30