NCJ Number
160578
Journal
Criminology Volume: 33 Issue: 4 Dated: (November 1995) Pages: 565-586
Date Published
1995
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This study applied Austin Turk's non-partisan conflict theory to police-citizen encounters at domestic disputes in a southern city.
Abstract
Inasmuch as Turk indicates that norm resistance should be higher when authorities act consistently with legal norms, the focus of this study was on cases in which an arrest was made at the domestic dispute. The Charleston Police Department (South Carolina) provided a computerized listing of domestic violence reports from 1988 through 1991. During the 4-year period, there were 749 such incident reports written. They were reviewed, and all cases in which some form of resistance was indicated were selected (n=81). A systematic comparison sample of the remaining nonresistance cases was drawn from the remaining cases (n=80). Five hypotheses were advanced and analyzed. The dependent variable was norm resistance, defined as overt conflict between authorities (officers) and subjects (batterers). The degree of resistance was measured. Regarding independent variables, the three "organization" (complexity/support) variables were whether disputants were related, whether more than one person was arrested, and whether there were witnesses in addition to the victim. Various indicators of "sophistication" were obtained from the incident reports. The study hypothesized that less sophistication on the part of police or citizens would relate to norm resistance. The findings show that after controlling for race, sex, and area of the city, overt conflict between the police and citizens was related to the organization and sophistication of the participants involved. 1 figure, 3 tables, and 47 references