Interaction satisfaction with university police: Procedural justice and perceptions of safety and fear on campus
| DOI | 10.1177/14613557221074985 |
| Date | 01 June 2022 |
| Author | N. Prabha Unnithan,Chris Moloney,Ian D Greenwood,Jebadiha Potterf |
| Published date | 01 June 2022 |
| Subject Matter | Original Research Articles |
Interaction satisfaction with university
police: Procedural justice and perceptions
of safety and fear on campus
Ian D Greenwood
Colorado State University, USA
Jebadiha Potterf
Colorado State University, USA
Chris Moloney
Colorado State University, USA
N. Prabha Unnithan
Colorado State University, USA
Abstract
We investigate student satisfaction with university police interactions in the context of the practice of procedural justice.
Drawing from a telephone survey project with a randomized sample of 1,400 university students, we identified 56 respon-
dents who indicated direct contact with campus police. Student perceptions of university police officer conduct is eval-
uated through: (a) student satisfaction with campus police contact, (b) individual-level predictors of satisfa ction, (c)
contextual predictors of satisfaction, (d) student perceptions of campus safety, and (e) student fears of victimization
on campus. The data are analyzed using multiple logistic regression models assessing the impact of procedural justice mea-
sures on student perceptions. We find that procedural justice is a significant predictor of student satisfaction across police
interactions. However, it has no impact on student feelings of safety and mitigating circumstances for fear of victimization
on campus across gender.
Keywords
procedural justice, campus safety, victimization, university police, police legitimacy
Submitted 19 Jul 2021, accepted 16 Nov 2021
Studying perceptions of the police involves considering
both the general public and subpopulations (Stewart et al.,
2009; Weitzer and Tuch, 1999) within. College students
are a subpopulation whose collective lifestyle and campus
experiences will affect them as victims, witnesses, or offen-
ders when they interact with the police. Previous studies
find that the daily lives and beliefs of college students are
influenced by somewhat unique social patterns According
to Jacobsen (2015) student lifestyle choices and shared
experiences expose them to potentially distinct patterns of
deviance and criminal conduct. Police departments that
operate on and are administered by colleges and universities
are common in the United States (Bordner and Petersen,
1983) but less so in other countries. However, their
Corresponding author:
N. Prabha Unnithan, Department of Sociology, Colorado State University,
Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
Email: prabha.unnithan@colostate.edu
Original Research Article
International Journal of
Police Science & Management
2022, Vol. 24(2) 210–224
© The Author(s) 2022
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DOI: 10.1177/14613557221074985
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