Interracial public–police contact: Relationships with police officers’ racial and work-related attitudes and behavior

Abstract

In a sample of Flemish police officers (N = 172), we examined whether interracial public-police contact is associated with police officers' racial and work-related attitudes and self-reported behavior. Complementing previous studies, it was revealed that interracial contact (both positive and negative) is related to prejudiced behavior toward immigrants via the mediating role of racial attitudes. Moreover, intergroup contact was also shown to be related to police officers' organizational citizenship behavior toward colleagues and superiors via their perceptions of organizational fairness. We elaborate on the severe impact of negative contact as well as the applied consequences of our findings within police organizations.