Abstract
The purpose of this research is to ascertain how occupational attitudes and background characteristics shape police recruit perceptions of policing people from diverse communities categorized by variations in racial, ethnic, religious, sexual, and gender identities. Applying an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model, data categorized into two groups (occupational attitudes and background characteristics) were collected from police recruits ( N = 946). Results suggest police recruits are significantly influenced by superior officers, the level of pride they have in their job, and their awareness of temperament and are cognizant of rule breaking when policing diverse community members, and ethnic minority self-identified recruits are significantly more likely to be aware of negative influences on proper conduct (such as lack of pride in their work, negativity of senior officers toward policing diverse people, and likelihood of rule breaking) when policing members of diverse groups than other recruits. The lessons learnt from this Australian research offer new insight into how police recruit perceptions of policing members of diverse groups are shaped.
Highlights
Awareness training sessions are facilitated at police academies to foster levels of knowledge regarding policing of minority groups, as well as target levels of implicit bias police officers may display toward certain groups or individuals when involved in community-oriented policing
The “Member of an Ethnic Group” variable (B = −1.3, SE = .53, p < .05) indicated that police recruits who identify as members of an ethnic group are more likely to be aware of negative influences on proper conduct when policing members of diverse groups due to their own ethnic identity
The results enhance the need for police organizations in Australia and around the globe to recruit more members of ethnically diverse populations. This argument has been made in numerous policing studies around the globe, the results of this study show that in an Australian context, police recruits who identify as members of an ethnic group are more likely to be aware of negative influences on proper conduct when policing members of diverse groups due to their own ethnic identity
Summary
Awareness training sessions are facilitated at police academies to foster levels of knowledge regarding policing of minority groups, as well as target levels of implicit bias police officers may display toward certain groups or individuals when involved in community-oriented policing. Screening out applicants with prior criminal histories and prior employment problems enables police organizations in Australia to significantly reduce the probability of hiring officers likely to engage in misconduct (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2018). This process is not exclusive to or limited to police recruitment in Australia, it does enable police organizations to actively seek qualities in the selection of recruits which may enhance their abilities to deal professionally with complex situations and diverse communities in the field (MilesJohnson & Pickering, 2018)
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