Police Bias Research Articles

Racial Bias in Police Traffic Stops: White Residents’ County-Level Prejudice and Stereotypes Are Related to Disproportionate Stopping of Black Drivers

Racial disparities in policing are well documented, but the reasons for such disparities are often debated. In the current research, we weighed in on this debate using a regional-level bias framework: We investigated the link between racial disparities in police traffic stops and regional-level racial bias, employing data from more than 130 million police traffic stops in 1,413 U.S. counties and county-level measures of racial bias from more than 2 million online respondents. Compared with their population share in county demographics, Black drivers were stopped at disproportionate rates in the majority of counties. Crucially, disproportionate stopping of Black drivers was higher in counties with higher levels of racial prejudice by White residents (rs = .07−.36). Furthermore, county-level aggregates of White people’s threat-related stereotypes were less consistent in predicting disproportionate stopping (rs = .00−.19). These observed relationships between regional-level bias and racial disparities in policing highlight the importance of the context in which police operate.

A Field Study of Racial Bias in Policing: Implications for Organizational Sciences

A Field Study of Racial Bias in Policing: Implications for Organizational Sciences

Policework in a racist context: A qualitative study of retired African American police officers

The law enforcement community has faced great scrutiny in policing tactics and their interactions with marginalized communities and experiences of systemic racism. Moreover, increases in awareness have elicited alarms for reforming and defunding the police. To date, a plethora of literature exists in examining policing, systemic racism, and best practices for reform. However, few studies have explored the perspectives and experiences of racialized practices experienced by African American police officers. This qualitative study explored intradepartmental discrimination, police reform, and alternative policing practices. Findings demonstrate retired police officers’ perceptions of racial bias in policing, how these practices changed over time, and how they may influence decision-making in law enforcement.

The association between perceived community violence, police bias, race, and firearm carriage among urban adolescents and young adults

Firearms are a leading cause of death among youth and young adults. Given community violence is an important correlate of youth firearm carriage, we evaluated: 1) If the association between perceived community violence and firearm carriage is stronger when perceived police bias is greater; and 2) If this moderated association differs by race. Cross-sectional data came from screening data for a longitudinal study of firearm behaviors among young adults seeking urban emergency department treatment between July 2017–June 2018 (N = 1264). We estimated Poisson regressions with robust error variance to evaluate associations between perceived community violence, police bias, race, and firearm carriage. Community violence was positively associated with firearm carriage (average marginal effect [AME]: 0.05; 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 0.03, 0.07). We also found that the positive association between community violence and firearm carriage increased with higher perceptions of police bias (interaction p < 0.05). We did not find evidence of a three-way interaction by which the moderated association between violence exposure and firearm carriage by perceived police bias varied by race of the respondents. Our findings suggest that community-level strategies to reduce violence and police bias may be beneficial to decrease youth firearm carriage in socio-economically disadvantaged urban settings.

Racial Bias in Traffic Stops: The City of Charlotte

This study analyzes the traffic stops data published by the City of Charlotte in the years 2016-2017 and 2019-2020 to determine if there was any racial bias in the policing. R was used to examine 213,475 stops that involved Black and White drivers. The analysis showed that Black drivers were more likely to be searched, and more likely to be let off with a lighter consequence (e.g., verbal warning). White drivers were more likely to get a citation while Black drivers were more likely to get arrested. When restricted to stops with searches, White drivers were more likely to be given a citation or arrested while Black drivers were more likely to be let off without action. These results are further skewed against Black males between the ages of 18-25. Implications are discussed. The R script and dataset are made available to facilitate reproducible research. Keywords: traffic stops, police bias, statistics, dataset

Police Enforcement of Cycling Offences: A Case Study in Winnipeg, Manitoba

Bias in policing is a concern in many Canadian cities, through there is little known about the impact on cyclists. This research analyzed the type and location of tickets issued to cyclists in Winnipeg, Manitoba to understand disparities in enforcement. We find that tickets are issued almost exclusively in inner-city areas, with the majority of tickets issued in five census tracts. Tickets were issued in areas that generally had more racialized and immigrant residents, and uniformly had more low-income residents. The unavailability of key data sources limits more in-depth understanding of the impact of policing on equity-seeking groups.

The recruitment of women and visible minorities into Canadian police forces: Should we expect further progress?

The recruitment of women and minority group members was intended to move Canadian police forces towards societal representation and to enhance services provided to, and improve relations with, women and racially marginalized groups. This review contemplates progress towards these goals at a time of extraordinary public dissatisfaction with Western policing. A rationale is offered for reconsidering the 50% representation target for women and it is emphasized just how little we yet know about racial bias in policing. The review ends with a call for rigorous, apolitical, research to untangle the complex interactions underscoring the considered questions within.

Heritage Not Hate? Confederate Flag Supporters Less Likely to Perceive Criminal Injustice, More Likely to View Police as Friends

Although the post-civil rights era has motivated many people to avoid appearing racist, they may still be unwilling to relinquish privileges derived from the U.S. racial hierarchy. Because the Confederacy fought to preserve slavery, which upheld this hierarchy, support for the Confederate flag may serve as a proxy measure for individuals’ commitment to maintaining privileges stemming from structural racism. Moreover, given that the modern legal system upholds this same racial hierarchy through anti-Black discrimination, individuals who prioritize protecting their privilege may soothe the guilt they feel for benefiting from structural racism by convincing themselves the legal system treats everyone equally. Similarly, because flag supporters identify with the symbol of a failed nation that considered northern states to have insufficiently policed Black people, they may view police as protectors of the racial hierarchy. Hypotheses were tested using randomly sampled CBS News national poll data. As anticipated, flag supporters were 66% less likely to perceive anti-Black criminal justice system bias, 60% less likely to perceive anti-Black police bias, 34% less likely to consider racial profiling widespread, and 55% more likely to view police as friends.

Police bias and diminished trust in police: a role for procedural justice?

PurposeSince 9/11, Muslims have experienced discrimination and scrutiny from authorities. For many, this experience has damaged their trust in law enforcement and left them with the impression that they are viewed as suspect. This study seeks to better understand the relationship between Muslims' perceived police bias and trust, and how procedural justice may shape this relationship.Design/methodology/approachThe authors collected survey data from 398 Muslims in Sydney, Australia, as part of a larger study on immigrants' views of police. Participants were surveyed on a range of topics including contact with police, global assessments of police procedural justice and how they believe police treat their cultural group.FindingsOverall, the authors find that the extent to which people perceive police bias is associated with their level of trust in police. Greater preconceived bias is associated with lower trust in police. The authors also find that perceiving police as procedurally just is positively related to trust. Importantly, this study finds a significant interaction effect between perceptions of police bias and procedural justice on Muslims' trust in police. Specifically, for those who hold the view that police are unbiased, perceiving police as generally procedural just has a strong positive effect on trust. For those who view police as biased against Muslims, procedural justice has a weak but positive effect on trust. This interaction effect suggests that perceived bias may shape how Muslims interpret police treatment of Muslims.Originality/valueThis study is the first to explore how perceived police bias and perceptions of procedural justice predict and interact to shape Muslims' trust in police, advancing existing procedural justice policing scholarship.

Perceptions of police legitimacy and bias from ages 13 to 22 among Black, Latino, and White justice-involved males.

Although researchers, policymakers, and practitioners recognize the importance of the public's perceptions of police, few studies have examined developmental trends in adolescents and young adults' views of police. Hypothesis 1: Perceptions of police legitimacy would exhibit a U-shaped curve, declining in adolescence before improving in young adulthood. Hypothesis 2: At all ages, Black youth would report more negative perceptions of police legitimacy than Latino youth, who would report more negative perceptions than White youth. Hypothesis 3: Perceptions of police bias would be consistently associated with worse perceptions of police legitimacy. Utilizing longitudinal data from the Crossroads Study, this study examined within-person trends in males' perceptions of police legitimacy from ages 13 to 22, as well as whether perceptions of police bias were associated with perceptions of police legitimacy. Perceptions of police legitimacy followed a U-shaped curve that declined during adolescence, reached its lowest point around age 18, and improved during the transition to young adulthood. Compared with White youth, Latino and Black youth had shallower curves in perceptions of police legitimacy that exhibited less improvement during the transition to adulthood. Further, perceptions of police bias were consistently associated with more negative perceptions of police legitimacy across races and ages. While perceptions of police legitimacy may decline during adolescence before improving during the transition to adulthood, perceptions of police bias are consistently negatively related to youth and young adults' perceptions of police legitimacy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Perceptions of police legitimacy and bias from ages 13 to 22 among Black, Latino, and White justice-involved males

OBJECTIVE Although researchers, policymakers, and practitioners recognize the importance of the public's perceptions of police, few studies have examined developmental trends in adolescents and young adults' views of police. HYPOTHESES Hypothesis 1: Perceptions of police legitimacy would exhibit a U-shaped curve, declining in adolescence before improving in young adulthood. Hypothesis 2: At all ages, Black youth would report more negative perceptions of police legitimacy than Latino youth, who would report more negative perceptions than White youth. Hypothesis 3: Perceptions of police bias would be consistently associated with worse perceptions of police legitimacy. METHOD Utilizing longitudinal data from the Crossroads Study, this study examined within-person trends in males' perceptions of police legitimacy from ages 13 to 22, as well as whether perceptions of police bias were associated with perceptions of police legitimacy. RESULTS Perceptions of police legitimacy followed a U-shaped curve that declined during adolescence, reached its lowest point around age 18, and improved during the transition to young adulthood. Compared with White youth, Latino and Black youth had shallower curves in perceptions of police legitimacy that exhibited less improvement during the transition to adulthood. Further, perceptions of police bias were consistently associated with more negative perceptions of police legitimacy across races and ages. CONCLUSIONS While perceptions of police legitimacy may decline during adolescence before improving during the transition to adulthood, perceptions of police bias are consistently negatively related to youth and young adults' perceptions of police legitimacy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

A Few Bad Apples? Racial Bias in Policing

We estimate the degree to which individual police officers practice racial discrimination. Using a bunching estimation design and data from the Florida Highway Patrol, we show that minorities are less likely to receive a discount on their speeding tickets than White drivers. Disaggregating this difference to the individual police officer, we estimate that 42 percent of officers practice discrimination. We then apply our officer- level discrimination measures to various policy-relevant questions in the literature. In particular, reassigning officers across locations based on their lenience can effectively reduce the aggregate disparity in treatment (JEL H76, J15, K42)

Public Opinion About Police Weapons and Equipment: An Exploratory Analysis

Despite debates about the “material militarization” of the police, relatively little information on mass public opinion about police weapons, equipment, and gear currently exists. We analyze data from a national, opt-in panel of survey participants to assess public opinion regarding police use of 10 different types of weapons and equipment for use in confrontations with citizens. We find that public opinion defies easy classification into “militarized” versus “routine” equipment categories. Multivariate analyses indicate that perceptions of (a) police efficacy and (b) the frequency with which officers experience physical assaults on the job are the most consistent predictors of support for a range of weapons and gear, whereas perceptions of police misconduct and bias predict opposition to some types of tools. Partisan differences in attitudes between Democrats, Republicans, and Independents are less consistent predictors than broader perceptions about policing, but the effects of partisanship that are evident are substantively large.

Policing Minority Communities: How Perception of Engagement and Level of “Awareness” Influence Officer Attitudes toward Practice

In the 21st century, policing of all citizens requires officers to have an increased awareness of minority communities. Yet in the wake of public complaints and mass demonstrations regarding police misconduct, it is clear that police bias toward minority communities often negatively influences engagement. To better understand police awareness of minority communities and how officers’ levels of awareness and perceptions of policing influence their perceptions of engagement, data were collected from police recruits and protective service officers (N = 1585) training at one of the largest police academies in Australia. The results show significant differences in awareness levels and perceptions of engagement of police recruits and protective service officers toward members of minority communities, as well as the factors influencing awareness during police–citizen engagement. These include the police recruit’s and protective service officer’s gender and sexuality, the frequency of socialization they have with diverse people, as well as the type of social interaction experienced. The results from this study offer suggestions to increase officers’ levels of awareness of minority communities, and how this may improve on-the-job performance overtime.

Dear White People

We are living in unprecedented times. While the world is grappling with COVID-19, we find the horrors of racism looming equally large as we, yet again, confront lurid deaths in the center of the news cycle of Black and brown people from police bias and brutality. Those of us who have been championing antiracism and justice work and bearing the burden of the "minority tax" have been overwhelmed by sudden asks from our well-intentioned White colleagues of how to best respond. In the tone of the Netflix series, "Dear White People," we further emphasize that we are not alone in trying to reach out to you, our White colleagues and leaders. Please hear our story and heed our call to action.

Reducing profiling bias in crime risk prediction models

Crime risk prediction and predictive policing can lead to safer communities, by focusing on crime hotspots. Yet predictive tools should be reliable, and their outputs should be valid, especially across diverse cultures. Machine learning methods in policing systems are topical as they seem to be causing unintended consequences that exacerbate social injustice. Research into machine learning algorithm bias is prevalent, but bias, as it relates to predictive policing, is limited. In this paper, we summarise the findings of nascent scholarship on the topic of bias in predictive policing. The unique contribution of this paper is in the use of a typical police prediction modelling process to unpack how and why such bias can creep into algorithms that have high predictive accuracy. Our research finds that especially when resources are limited, trust in machine learning outputs is elevated; systemic bias of preceding assumptions may replicate. Recommendations include a call for human oversight in machine learning methods with sensitive applications such as automated crime prediction methods. Routine reviews of prediction outputs can ensure unwarranted community targeting is not magnified.

Supplemental Material for Perceptions of Police Legitimacy and Bias from Ages 13 to 22 Among Black, Latino, and White Justice-Involved Males

Supplemental Material for Perceptions of Police Legitimacy and Bias from Ages 13 to 22 Among Black, Latino, and White Justice-Involved Males

Emergency Department visits for depression following police killings of unarmed African Americans.

Previous literature on racism and adverse mental health largely focuses on individual-level exposures. We investigate whether and to what extent structural racism, as measured by police killings of unarmed African Americans, affect a severe and acute mental health outcome among African Americans: depression-related Emergency Department (ED) visits. We used police killings of unarmed African Americans as our exposure and depression-related ED visits (per 100,000 population) as our outcome. We examined the relation across 75 counties from five US states between 2013 and 2015 (2700 county-months). Linear fixed effect analyses controlled for time-invariant county-factors as well as the number of hospitals and arrests for violent crimes (per 100,000 population). Police killings of unarmed African Americans correspond with an 11% increase in ED visits per 100,000 population related to depression among African Americans in the concurrent month and three months following the exposure (p<0.05). Researchers and policymakers may want to consider prevention efforts to reduce racial bias in policing and implement surveillance of fatal police encounters. These encounters, moreover, may worsen mental health and help-seeking in the ED among African Americans not directly connected to the encounter.

The science of statistics in victimhood culture: Dignity and dishonor

Recent renaming of the R.A. Fisher Award and Lectureship without official discussion among members of American Statistical Association (ASA), along with other events of similar type, was an important step in creating a new atmosphere in science in general. On the one hand, this is tightly related to such critical issues as freedom of speech, research and opinion, while on the other hand, it is related to conformity, yielding to irrelevant demand, and to denial of evidence as a first basic principle in science. The paper shows that a) all accusations against R. Fisher are factually groundless; b) the decision was motivated not by the facts, but by political and moral pressure, connected with allegedly “institutional racism” of the American society and the US police specifically; c) the decision was a natural consequence of the victimhood culture, which penetrates more and more into academia; d) this culture, in turn, is counter-scientific in a sense that it does not need any evidence; e) particularly, the most popular current thesis about “police bias against black people” – which seems a direct real trigger of the lecture renaming – cannot be confirmed by available data. Showing all that, the paper could be considered a warning against dangerous social tendencies in modern science in general and statistics in particular.

Implications of youths’ perceptions of police bias and the code of the street for violent offending.

Implications of youths’ perceptions of police bias and the code of the street for violent offending.