NCJ Number
84628
Date Published
1982
Length
63 pages
Annotation
This Indian study of a sample of 197 New Delhi 8th, 9th, and 10th graders examines their attitude toward police, subject background factors affecting their attitude toward police, and their susceptibility to attitude change.
Abstract
A Personal Data Blank was used to obtain information on demographic variables, school curriculum, and police-adolescent contact. For measuring subjects' attitudes toward police, a Summated Rating Scale similar to the format given by Likert was used. After initial testing, those extremely positive toward the police and those extremely negative toward them were further subdivided into two groups in each classification. One subgroup in each classification was asked to read a positive statement about the police, and the second subgroup in each classification was asked to read a negative statement about the police. These groups were retested to determine if these verbal stimuli sparked any attitude change. Overall, the subjects' attitudes toward the police were positive. The only background factors apparently affecting attitudes were grade level, with those in the higher grade tending to be more negative toward the police, and extent of prior contact with police, with those having more contact tending to be more negative toward the police. The positive and negative statements to the subgroups of the high and low categories did stimulate attitude change, with the negative stimulus producing the more marked change. The findings suggest that police efforts to improve the quality of their contacts with adolescents can produce positive attitude change; on the other hand, adolescents are quick to form negative attitudes toward the police when adolescents disapprove of their actions. Tabular data are provided, and the attitude scale and the positive and negative statements about the police are appended. A total of 66 references are provided.