NCJ Number
209862
Journal
Criminal Justice Studies: A Critical Journal of Crime, Law and Society Volume: 18 Issue: 1 Dated: March 2005 Pages: 29-50
Date Published
March 2005
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This study probed whether minority-threat theory or workload theory provides the best explanation of police behavior at the community level.
Abstract
Previous research has examined the impact of countless variables on police behavior including environmental factors, individual factors, police organizational factors, and police subculture factors. Currently there is renewed interested in explaining why police officers work differently in high crime communities than they do in communities with lower crime rates. The current study used ecological theory as a framework from which to examine the impact of the workload and the minority-threat hypotheses on lenient policing. Data were drawn through a self-administered questionnaire completed by 353 police officers in a mid-sized police department in the Midwest. Census tract data from 1990 was also used in the analysis. Data under examination included crime rates, percent minority, socio-demographic factors, officer workload, and lenient policing. Results of structural equation modeling indicated a significant negative and direct relationship between police workload and lenient policing. Results also showed a direct and significant relationship between the percentage of Black residents and lenient policing. Thus, patrols with more minorities are less likely to be lenient than officers in majority White patrol areas and patrols in higher crime areas are more likely to be lenient because of their heavy workload. Future research should focus on how the nature of crime impacts police behavior. Tables, figure, notes, references