NCJ Number
79986
Date Published
1981
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Findings are presented from a 1981 Harris survey that measured public confidence in local, State, and Federal law enforcement officials.
Abstract
The telephone survey, which was conducted between January 22 and January 25, 1981, asked a cross section of 1,250 adults nationwide to rate the job done by local, State, and Federal law enforcement officials as excellent, pretty good, only fair, or poor. Responses show that for the first time in more than a decade, Americans have regained enough confidence in law enforcement agencies at the local, State, and Federal levels to give them all a positive rating on job performance. This increase in confidence in law enforcement officials is all the more remarkable in view of the increased concern among Americans about crime in their neighborhoods. That the public can hold both views simultaneously can be explained by analyzing the attitudes of the public over the past decade. Significant deterioration in public confidence in law enforcement occurred during the period of the Watergate disclosures, when the public learned that Federal law enforcement agencies were engaged in illegal activities. These negative feelings now appear to be fading. The rise in confidence in local law enforcement has led the comeback, but even the Federal enforcement agencies now receive positive marks, if only by a bare 48-45 percent positive-negative response comparison. Confidence in law enforcement at all levels appears to have made the most significant gains in the East and South, among big city dwellers, young people under 30, blacks, and liberals. Tabular data are given. (Author summary modified)