The perception of danger : the case of the police

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the perception of danger by the police. That is to say, what variables affect the perception of danger by a police sample, and if the police perceive danger to any degree differently from the non-police members of society.

For a review of pertinent criminal justice literature, the variables of a police officer's age, race, socio-economic status, police experience, and exposure to violence were identified as affecting the perception of danger. These variables were empirically evaluated.

In order to empirically evaluate this relationship, a questionnaire was administered to police officers in Youngstown, Ohio. A similar questionnaire was administered to a sample of non-police students. The results of the survey suggests that the variables, traditionally defined in the literature, do not to a great degree, affect the perception of danger. The findings do, however, tentatively support the proposition that the police do perceive high levels of danger than the non-police. Further study, therefore, is needed in order to explain the observed differences between the police and the non-police sample.