NCJ Number
106658
Journal
Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Volume: 78 Issue: 1 Dated: (Spring 1987) Pages: 177-196
Date Published
1987
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Attitudes of different ethnic and age groups concerning police and policing were examined by comparing the unique clustering of responses of the following groups: blacks, Cuban-Americans, non-Hispanic whites, teenagers, and adults.
Abstract
Interviews were conducted with 78 black adults, 108 Cuban adults, and 38 white adults from selected neighborhoods in Dade County, Fla. Student samples were selected from high school juniors and seniors in the same neighborhoods. Completed questionnaires came from 190 black teens, 103 Cuban teens, and 89 white teens. The attitudinal structures of the different groups were similar in some respects and different in others. Age and ethnicity were both important variables affecting attitude structures. Cuban adults had the most unidimensional attitudes toward the police. Black adults had the most multidimensional attitudes. The attitudes of Cuban and black youths were closer to one another than to those of the white youths. The demeanor of police officers was the most important factor in attitudes toward police. Caution must be used when comparing dissimilar groups by means of attitude scales, because different groups can have different cognitive structures. Data tables and footnotes. (Author abstract modified)