YHF ‘ LI BRA R Y _ Michigan State u Universi E! BIN‘SI‘NG 73v ‘- HUM; & SUNS' 800K BINDERY INC. 9‘ ‘.IBRARY BINDERS “ THE PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL TOWARD THE POLICE: A STUDY CONDUCTED IN MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN By Thomas Frank Christian AN ABSTRACT OF A THESIS Submitted to The College of Social Science Michigan State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF SCIENCE School of Criminal Justice 1971 " Approved: I ‘_,J ,. ; ;‘.a‘4‘ 3r. 'o-ert '. ’ro .'ow’cz, q airman 1 4 “- “ ‘iam G} Hegarty, In ructor Tinston ;. EiBson, Instructor ABSTRACT THE PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL TOWARD THE POLICE: A STUDY CONDUCTED IN MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN by Thomas F. Christian Purpose The perception of the individuals within one component of the Criminal Justice System toward the role or function of another group is necessary to understand the effective- ness of the entire system. This study centers around the perception of social agency personnel towards the police. The community itself is the original background from which the Criminal Justice System begins to develop. The community has certain needs which are the bases for estab- lishing agents to fulfill these needs. These agents work for and serve the community. The Criminal Justice System in actuality is the community meeting the demands for social control. Police are "the gatekeepers" or those responsible for the beginning of the process in which an individual may have to leave the community and deal with the formal members of the Criminal Justice System. The social agencies serve the community in the area of criminal justice by functioning as referral agents which give Thomas F. Christian supportive help to the individual (treatment) or serve as controlling agents (restrictions and/or custody). Per- ceptions of social agency personnel toward the police were sought in this study in order to help understand the con- nections between the police function and the social agency function in the Criminal Justice System. In this study three basic concepts were explored by means of a series of questions which were asked of the personnel in eleven social agencies in Muskegon, Michigan. The first concept dealt with the perception of social agency personnel toward the social awareness of the police. Do the police in this city have a good view of the total needs of the entire citizenry or would the police officer be better classified as being a person who has a strict law enforcement approach to his job? The second concept involved the perception of the social agency personnels' acceptance and awareness of the utilization of the available community resources by the police. Does the police officer know the resources and does he use them properly? The third concept centered around the perception of the social agency personnel toward the tasks (special service, minor law enforcement and major law enforcement) for which they perceive the police being reSponsible and the extent to which the police officers should spend their Thomas F. Christian time dealing with these tasks. (Relative importance of police performance.) Methodology Preliminary interviews were conducted in five Muskegon social agencies. With this information, a review of the pertinent available literature and the author's personal experience working with and for social agencies, a question- naire was developed and distributed to eleven Muskegon social agencies. One-hundred and eighteen social agency personnel responded to the questionnaire. Results The eleven agencies were divided into five groups because of the small staff of certain agencies. The first group was called private agencies (Catholic Social Service, Muskegon Rescue Mission, Salvation Army and the West Shore Mental Health Clinic). This group consisted of seventeen members. The second classification was public agencies (fifty-four members of the Department of Social Services). The third division was the juvenile and adult court (four- teen personnel). The fourth section was called minority centered agencies (Community Action Against Poverty, Legal Aid, and the Urban League). This group had fourteen participants. The fifth group were nineteen school coun- selors representing the school system. Thomas F. Christian Three hypotheses were developed. It was hypothesized that there would be a consensus in the perception of the social agencies in regard to the policeman's social aware- ness. This hypothesis was rejected. It was hypothesized that there would be consensus among social agencies' personnel regarding their acceptance and awareness of the policeman‘s utilization of the avail- able community resources. This hypothesis was also rejected. It was hypothesized that there would be a consensus among social agency personnel and their perception of those tasks for which policemen should be responsible. This hypothesis was accepted. THE PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL TOWARD THE POLICE: A STUDY CONDUCTED IN MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the School of Criminal Justice Michigan State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science by Thomas Frank Christian 1971 DEDICATION To my Mother and Father Ruth and Edward Christian for sharing their perceptions of people and life. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Herbert J. Dood, the police chief of Muskegon, and all the personnel from the Muskegon social agencies for their help and cooperation in con- ducting this study. I wish to acknowledge Dr. Knowlton Johnson for his assistance with the computerized data; Dr. Robert C. Trojanowicz, the chairman of my committee, whose friend- ship, encouragement and direction are greatly appreciated; William Hegarty and Winston Gibson for serving on my advisory committee; Mrs. Sheryl Ten Broeke for typing the final report; my brother Ken for his help and support; my wife Bernice for being my partner in all my work. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE LIST OF TABLES OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOCOOOOOOOQOOOOOOO Vii CHAPTER I. THE PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL TOWARD THE POLICE ....................... 1 Definition of Terms ................... 5 II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ................ 7 Need for Exchange of Services ......... 9 Need for Coordination of Services ..... lO Philosophical Differences ............. 12 Need for Cooperation .................. 19 III. INTERVIEWS, FORMULATION OF THE HYPOTHESIS, AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE 0..OOOOOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 28 setting COOOCCOOOOOOOOCOOOOO0.0.0.0.... 28 The InterViews .OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 29 The School System ................... 29 Legal Aid 0.0000000000000000000000000 31 The Juvenile court 0.0000000000000000 32 Department of Social Services ....... 34 Community Action Against Poverty .... 37 iv CHAPTER Other Agencies (participating) ......... Catholic Social Services ............. Muskegon Rescue Mission .............. Salvation Army ....................... The Urban League ..................... West Shore Mental Health Clinic ...... Adult Court .......................... Development of the Hypotheses and QueStionnaire 0.00.0...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Grouping of Agencies ................... Iv. SAMPLING ................................. Age .................................... Educational Level ...................... Present Position ....................... Years of Experience .................... V. ANALYSIS ................................. Hypothesis I - Social Awareness ........ Hypothesis II - Use of Resources ....... Hypothesis III - Importance of Police F‘mc-tion OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Special Services ..................... Minor Law Enforcement ................ Major Law Enforcement ................ VI. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........,. Conclusions ............................ General Statements ................... PAGE 59 59 4o 40 4o 41 41 41 44 45 45 49 49 52 55 56 6O 65 68 7o 74 74 7e CHAPTER PAGE Recommendations ....................... 80 Social Awareness .................... 80 Use of Resources .................... 85 Police Tasks ........................ 85 BIBLIOGRAPHY 0.0.0.0000....00...OOOOOOOOOOIOOOOOOOO 87 APPENDIX A. Muskegon Health and Welfare Resources DireCtOrycover OOOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 94 B. Letter of Introduction for Project ... 96 C. Questionnaire ........................ 98 D. Letter of Acknowledgment to Participating Agencies ............... 117 vi TABLE 1. 5. 4. 5. 7. 8. 9. 10. ll. 12. LIST OF TABLES Agencies and Personnel Participating in Study OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO00.0.0.0... Description of Participating Agency Personnel According to Age ............... Description of Participating Agency Personnel According to Educational Level . Description of Participating Social Agency Personnel According to Present POSition 0.00.00...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Description of Social Agency Personnel According to Years of Experience In SOCial Agency work ooooooooooooooooooooooo Agency Personnel's Perception of Police Social Awareness ......................... Agency Personnel's Acceptance and Aware- ness of Police Utilization of Community Resources OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO0.0.0.0000... Indexes of Discrimination and Difficulty on Questions Pertaining to Acceptance and Awareness of Police Utilization of Community Resources ...................... Agency Personnel's Perception of Police Function Regarding Special Services ...... Agency Personnel's Perception of Police Function Regarding Minor Law Enforcement . Agency Personnel‘s Perception of Police Function Regarding Major Law Enforcement . Results of Hierarchical Cluster Analysis . vii PAGE 46 48 5O 51 55 58 61 64 66 69 71 72 CHAPTER I THE PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL TOWARD THE POLICE In an ideal community the family should be able to handle most of the problems that they encounter in every- day life. When they are not capable of resolving a given conflict they may call upon neighbors, friends or rela- tives. Because of the seriousness of a particular prob- lem, families, relatives and neighbors often must call on an agency set up to serve the community, such as the police. The police, in turn, often refer a given family to another agency more suited for the situation, e.g. family counseling. The Criminal Justice System starts with the individual citizen and it may then expand to include family, neighbors, community, police, social agencies, court and institutions. It ultimately can re- turn to the community, neighbors, family and the individ- ual. Actual interagency conflict can arise from an agent who perceives his own role in a disproportionate rela- tionship to the other members of the Criminal Justice System. This may cause disconnection among the parts of the system and may have an adverse effect on the entire system. For example, people in the community become de- pendent on someone outside of their immediate social circle and almost prefer to call in an agency to serve their needs. The police, therefore, are able to function almost ex- clusively as the law enforcing agent. This enables them to become more independent and possess the power and authority to regulate the controls necessary for a partic- ular individual, neighborhood or city. Social agencies have also been given total domain in their particular areas of interest. Because people have been told to leave "policing" to the police and "social work" to the social worker, "pro- fessional problems" to the professionals, they havewoften done just that. This has given the police and social agencies (e.g. social services, courts, institutions) al- most absolute power to determine their own philosophies, policies and methods of social control. Because each de- partment is independent it does not have to answer to another, much less to the people it is set up to serve. This development has created an extreme situation. When a person or an agency goes to an extreme there is usually a reaction from the people who are affected the most. The poor, the minorities and the deprived often call upon the police and social agencies for help because of the lack of other resources. When the police and social agencies do not meet the needs of the deprived, a steady uneasiness develops. A sense of mistrust arises. These rumblings eventually echo to all parts of society. Each community reacts in many ways depending on how much its members have been involved with the police or a given agency. If they have little contact with the police, they often resent those who have had numerous contacts and they cannot understand the nature of the complaints. There is also an element of the community which sympathizes with the poor and the deprived. Because the police and social agencies have been left to develop their own philosophies, policies and methods of action, they have not had to work together with each other and with the community on the problems of the total city. Thus the police have emphasized law enforce- ment and in their own minds have left rehabilitation and treatment to the social agencies. Conflict results when the philosophy, policies and methods of action between the police and the social agencies differ. Because they are both in the continuum of the Criminal Justice System they are forced to deal with each other's mistakes. Conditions no longer allow both these components of the Criminal Justice System to act independently. They both contribute to, and hold the solution for, each others problems. However, the community has permitted this dilemma to de- velop and exist. Thus, the total community, not just selected components of the Criminal Justice System, must work together for a solution. It is the purpose of this paper to look into the social agencies and their perception of the police. Per- haps by studying some of the results of this research, better programs for interagency communication, cooperation and overall unity in the Criminal Justice System can be developed. This study is a part of a project that was done in three steps. First, a study was made of certain community characteristics in relation to community attitudes of the police in the city of Muskegon, Michigan. (Moore, 1970)1 Secondly, a study was conducted examining behavior and perceptions of law enforcement, probation and social agency personnel. This was an evaluation of an in-service training program for the police conducted by the Center on Police and Community Relations at Michigan State University. (K. Johnson, 1971)2 Thirdly, this study was conducted in ‘1Merlyn D. Moore, "A Study of Certain Community Characteristics in Relation to Community Attitudes of the Police in the City of Muskegon, Michigan" (Unpublished Master's Thesis, Michigan State University, 1970). 2Knowlton Johnson, "Examining behavior and percep- tions of law enforcement, probation and social agency per- sonnel: An evaluation of an in—service training program, Muskegon, Michigan," May El, 1971, Center on Police and Community Relations. Michigan State University. the major social agencies in Muskegon to determine the perceptions of the social agency personnel towards the Muskegon police. Briefly, the entire study was conducted to see what the community felt the police should be doing, what the social agency personnel thought the function of the police should be, and what role the police themselves thought they should be fulfilling. (K. Johnson, 1971)3 Definition of Terms The term Criminal Justice System in this study will include the individual citizen, the family, neighborhood, community (city), the police, social agencies, and the institutions. In short, it will involve everyone. To limit it to the police, the courts, jails and corrections may be one of the reasons why society has a law and order problem today. The term social agency in the Criminal Justice System will include any organized body that deals with people who have problems with the law. The police department will be considered a separate body from the other social agencies. 5Knowlton Johnson, "Police Interaction and Referral Activity with Personnel of Supportive Agencies: A Multivariant Analysis" (unpublished dissertation, Michigan State University, 1971). This study looks at the perception of the other social agencies toward the police. Because the police are called the "gatekeepers" to the formal Criminal Justice System they are considered key agents in beginning the process of sending a person through the entire criminal justice process. It is assumed that if the social agen- cies work together more with the police as potential sources of referral, other alternatives could be developed than in- carceration. Perception in this study is defined as the act, pro- cess or product by which social agency personnel under- stand the role, tasks, and function of the police in the Criminal Justice System. (Based on Funk and Wagnalls 1965).4 4Funk and Wagnalls, Standard Dictionary, International Ifiiigign, (New York: Funk and Wagnalls Company, 1965), ‘p. 9 . CHAPTER II REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Perception and its possible role in interagency con- flict is the focal point on which the review of the literap ture is based. Much has been written on interorganiza- tional conflict but "surprisingly the agencies specifically charged with social control functions, such as public and private police forces, prosecutors and defenders, civil and criminal courts and the correctional and treatment agencies, have received the least systematic study. The major ex- ceptions are the adult and juvenile correctional services and the mental hospital system which have been subjected to a series of organizational studies over the last fifteen years. The most neglected agencies have been the police and the courts."5 Those who believe that the study of organizations is a valuable part of social inquiry need to extend their research perspectives so as to understand influence in interorganizational activity and comprehend the determinants 5Lloyd E. Ohlin, "A Situational Approach to Delin- quency Prevention," U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare Social and Rehabilitation Service, 1970, p. 6, (Pamphlet). of policy and practice among loosely joined organizations.6 It is possible to see today's urban community in terms of conflicting interest groups rather than in terms of extensive citizen participation in a primary community.7 The chief focus in the study of organizations has been on patterns within, rather than between, organizations. Studies of interrelationships have largely been confined to units within the same organizational structure or between a pair of complementary organizations. March and Simon suggest that interorganizational conflict is very similar to intergroup conflict within organizations.8 Thus, adminis- trators may present one philosophy while people in the field may hold another. Blau has commented on the general prob- lems involved in studying multiple organizations. In the Criminal Justice System there are many organizations deal- ing with various phases of social control. In the social agency area alone, there are multiple departments that often work independently of each other. The Criminal Justice 6Burton R. Clark, "Interorganization Patterns in Education," Administration Science Quarterly, Sept. 1965, 7Pranab Chatterjee and Raymond A. Koleski, "The Con- cepts of Community and Community Organization: A Review,“ Social Work, July 1970, pp. 82-92. 8Peter M. Blau, "Formal Organization: Dimensions of Analysis," American Journal of Sociology, 63 (1957). p. 58. System is faced with the problem of not only uniting its various parts, but also of organizing those same parts with- in themselves.9 In pointing up the need to study the organization in relation to its environment, Etzioni specifies the area of interorganizational relationships as one meriting further intensive empirical study. Need for Exchange of Services Etzioni quotes Levine and White who explain the ele- ment of exchange between organizations as a conceptual framework for the study of interorganizational relation— ships. They define organizational exchange as any volun- tary activity between two organizations which has consequences, actual or anticipated, for the realization of their respective goals or objectives.lo A police offi- cer may make a referral to a social agency if he knows the function of that agency. Social agency personnel see this action as a part of a process rather than "a passing of the buck." Both organizations need each other and 9James G. March and H. A. Simon, Organizations, (New York: Wiley, 1958). loAmitai Etzioni, "New Directions in the Study of Organizations and Society," Social Research, 27 (1960), IO actually exist for the same reason. They do not have to be in conflict. In fact, it defeats both of their objec- tives. Need for Coordination of Services The low level of coordination among social welfare agencies has long been considered a major problem for community organization. Reid states that the determinants of coordination are shared goals, complementary resources and efficient mechanisms for controlling whatever exchanges are involved. Two organizations may nominally share a broad, formal goal of reducing juvenile delinquency; one organization, a police department, may view this goal primarily in terms of vigorous law enforcement. The other organization, a family agency, may interpret it as alleviat- ing psychological problems of disturbed youngsters. The operational goals of the organization may then be quite divergent and may offer little basis for coordination. The more limited agency goals become, the less chance there is for sharing of goals to occur. Shared goals become a neces- sity. For this to happen, however, the police and the social agency must provide each other with resources needed to achieve their goals. Reid calls this complementary re- sources. If both agencies have goals uniquely shaped to their resources, they may become insularly self-sufficient. 11 An agency ready to coordinate is perhaps one whose goals exceed its resources.11 Often policies run counter to the goals of whatever coordinated efforts are being attempted. Such problems may be compounded when the agencies are large and heavily bureaucratic. Here coordination control must deal not only with an imposing agency array of department heads and specialists but also with the agency's own internal organi- zational problems. Litwak and Hylton speak of coordination on an inter- organizational level as centering around interdependence, awareness, standardization of organizational activities and number of organizations involved. Interdependence means that two or more organizations must take each other into account if they are to accomplish their goals. More scien— tific research is needed to Show police and social agencies that they must work together in order to solve each others problems and fulfill their purpose of serving the community. Being aware of their roles, defined mutually in a standard- ized way, each organization can avoid conflict of roles and duplication of services.12 llWilliam Reid, "Interagency Coordination in Delin- quency Prevention and Control," Social Service Review, .1964, Pp. 355-367. 12Eugene Litwak and Lydia F. Hylton, "Interorganiza— tional Analysis: A Hypothesis on Coordinating Agencies," Administrative Science Quarterly, VI, 4, (March, 1962) pp 0 395-420. 12 Philosophical Differences A major conflict between the police and social agen- cies and their perception of each other comes in the area of philosophy.13 The social worker tries to conquer the immediate need of his client. Here the factor of speed is important. The necessity of accepting and being willing to bear the consequences of possible errors, even of helping somebody who may not seem to deserve help, must be taken by the social worker. It is analogous with the concept of love for mankind which has the principle that it is better to miss condemning several guilty persons than to condemn one innocent one. Another aspect of the social worker's philosophy is self-abrogation, the self-conquest of social help, as far as possible, by guiding the person into independence. He tries to give the client the feel- ing of being necessary.14 A sense of dignity and personal worth are cultivated. Emphasis is put on establishing 13See for example: John M. Pfiffner, The Function of the Police in a Democratic Society, Civic Center Campus, Center for Training and Career Development, University of Southern California, April 1967, p. 4; Robert C. Trojanowicz, "Factors That Affect the Functioning of Delinquency Preven- tion Programs," Police Chief, February, 1971, p. 44; Albert C. Holloway, "SocIaI Work Corrections," 444 course offered at Michigan State University, Spring 1971. 14Paul Tillich, "The Philosophy of Social Work," The Practice of Social Work, (Belmont, California: WadswortH s g 0., nc., 970), pp. 15-20. 13 communication, a sense of equality and economic opportunity.15 The mission of the social worker is to assist the individual and society to achieve their potential. It is to maximize that potential and to propose programs to fill the gaps in a given community. Holloway quotes Helen Pearlman and Fran Hollis emphasizing the importance of the relationship be- tween the client and the worker. There should be individ- ualization, a recognition of the unique qualities of the person, a purposeful expression of feelings, controlled emotional involvement, acceptance, a non-judgmental atti- tude, a sense of the clients self determination and a pro- fessional approach to the matter of confidentiality.16 The philosophy of a police department is not as delicately Spelled out. The absence of carefully developed policies to guide police officers in handling the wide ‘variety of situations which they confront is in sharp con- trast to the efforts taken to provide detailed guidance for other aspects of police operations.17 The police administrator has greater control over management questions than he does over the criminal justice process. The fact I5Mary J. McCormick, "Human Values and the Poor," The Practice of Social Work, (Belmont, California: WadswortH ‘8 g 0., nc., 970), PP. 20-350 16Holloway, 92, cit. 17Task Force Re ort: The Police, The President's CommissIon on Law Efigorcement anE Idfiinistration of Justice (U.S. Printing Office, Washington: 1967), pp. 16-17. 14 that the courts in particular have assumed increasing responsibility for control in this area has resulted in a prevalent attitude by police administrators that criminal justice policy decisions are not their concern. As a con- sequence, neither police training nor research has been directed toward these basic policy questions.18 The statement is often made that the role of the police officer should be defined and that his duties in service to the community should be divided so that he knows his function and is able to act accordingly.19 Edward M. Davis, the chief of police for the city of Los Angeles, in writing on professional police principles, quotes Sir Robert Peel and his nine principles developed in 1822: (l) The basic mission of the police is the prevention of crime. (2) The second principle is that the police must have the full respect of the citizenry. (3) A citizen's respect for law develops his respect for the police. (4) Cooperation of the public decreases as the use of force increases. (5) Police must render impartial enforcement of the law. 18lbid., pp. 16-17. 19The Challenge of Crime in a Free Societ , (U.S. Government‘Printing Office, Washington, D.CZ, ebruary 1967). pp. 97-98. 15 (6) Physical force is used only as a last resort. (7) The police are the public and the public are the police. (8) Police represent the law. (9) The absence of crime and disorder is the test of police efficiency. Chief Davis points out in principle five that "the police- man's boss is not his sergeant or the chief. The police- man does not work for the white people or the black people; he doesn't represent the ‘establishment.’ The policeman is a servant of the law."20 This type of philOSOphy would conflict in certain ways with the social worker who works for the individual and society. The law may be interpreted differently by him than by a policeman. The question arises should the police officer be a controlling agent or a supportive agent?21 This is still the old argument of whether to punish an offender or rehabilitate him. Dr. Menninger proposes that police emphasis should be on prevention rather than upon detec- tive action. Quoting August Vollmer's Policeman as Social RZUEdward M. Davis, "Professional Police Principles," Federal Probation, March 1971, pp. 29-54. 21Elaine Cumming, Ian M. Cumming and Laura Edell, "Policeman as PhilOSOpher, Guide and Friend," Social Problems, Winter 1965, p. 277. 16 Workers (1919), and a recent report by a mental health re- search unit, he accepts uncritically the statement that problems of health, safety or interpersonal relationships represent about half of the calls received by a metropolitan police department.22 The fact that from thirty-five to ninety percent of the time of the police is spent on non- criminal activities is regarded as one of the reasons why American police are so ineffectual in detecting and appre- hending criminals. Both Vollmer and his successor, O. W. Wilson, were pioneers many years ago in advocating that policemen should be social workers and lead in the pre- vention of crime. Both these points of view have been dis- credited in favor of referral and c00peration with other community agencies better qualified for such work.23 The question still remains, however, why if police and social agencies are supposed to work together, they come into so much conflict? Perhaps they cannot truly work 22Karl Mennin er, The Crime of Punishment, (New York: Viking Press, 1969, p. 270: See also;‘HowardiB. Gill, "Shock Theraphy for Criminal Justice," Federal Probation, June 1969, pp. 56-58; Frank J. Remington, “The Role 0 Police in a Democratic Society," Police Science, Vol. 56, 1965, pp. 561-565, Pfiffner, o . cit., pp. 1-14; William Dienstein, "Conflict of Belle 5 About Causes of Delinquency," Crime and Delin uenc , VI, No. 5(July 1960) pp. 287- 295; Leonard Savitz, DiIemmas in Criminology, (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967), pp. 66¥79. 23Gill, _p. t., p. 58. 17 together if their philosophical differences are not com- promised. Cumming, Cumming and Edell report that the police have little knowledge of, and liaison with, social or even medical agencies, and seem to feel that these agencies' activities are irrelevant to the problems they, themselves, face.24 Menninger states that few professional urban police agencies would accept a social work thesis as their func- tional responsibility. He would see the police as defensive and resentful if asked to be more social work oriented. Nevertheless, he sees a new spirit and social philosophy in the police profession and quotes L. Mlecyko's, "A Humane Cop (Don Stevens) Urges Change by and for Police." (Police Times, 5:5, 1968).25 James Q. Wilson sees the patrolman's role as being defined more by his responsibility for maintaining order than.by his responsibility for enforcing the law. In his book, Varieties of Police Behavior, he sees police depart- ments adopting a watchman's style, a legalistic style or a service style.26 ZrCumming, Cumming, Edell, pp. cit., pp. 276-277. 25F . - iennlnger, _p. Cit., p. 270. 26James Q. Wilson, Varieties of Police Behavior, (Cambridge, Massachusetts: HarvardIUniversity Press, 1969), PP. 140-225. 18 Moore, in his study of community attitudes in Muskegon, found that whites and married respondents tended to prefer a legalistic style of police behavior, while non-whites were more likely to prefer either the watchman or service styles. In socio-political philosophy conservatives pre- ferred the legalistic style and liberals preferred the watchman and service styles.27 Walter Miller states that operating philosophies that differ become non-functional for the purpose of reducing juvenile crime and that a consequence of differences in institutional philosophies is that a significant proportion of energy potentially directable to delinquency reduction is instead expended in conflict between institutions.28 A police officer goes throug h a lot of work to develop a case against a citizen and watches helplessly as he is released from jail the day he is arrested and later he is placed on probation and returned to the community to once again give the police officer headaches. On the other hand, the probation counselor who writes up the recommendation in 277Moore, 2p. cit., p. 125. 28Walter B. Miller, "Inter—Institutional Conflict as a Major Impediment to Delinquency Prevention, " Human Organization. XVII, 5 (1958), pp. 20-25. 19 the presentence investigation resents the cold punitive approach he thinks he detects in the policeman's attitude. Although they claim to be working for the same goal, namely, a change in the behavior of the offender, and a safer com- munity, they cannot agree on basic philosophy. They may even argue whether it is more important to put the needs of the individual offender first or the needs of the com- munity first. Need for Cooperation If the court decision fails to reflect the legitimate needs of the enforcement agency, police often react by asserting that courts ought to get out of the law enforce- ment business. This is highly unrealistic. Courts have historically assumed and no doubt will continue to assume responsibility for insuring that governmental power is not abused to the detriment of the individual rights of citizens. The question ought not be whether courts or police will have exclusive domain. Rather the need is to develop methods for constructive cooperation between courts and police in the discharge of their common objective, a system of criminal justice administration which is both fair and effec- tive.29 29Remington,_p. cit., pp. 561-565. 20 Police tend to adhere to the classical school of thought in looking at an offender. It states that the of- fender possesses reason and free will and that the major reason for his acting out in a negative manner is because he willed to commit the crime. A remedy to this would be punishment (incarceration) so that he can contemplate his behavior and “unwill” to commit future crimes.50 The social worker often tends to follow the positive school of thought. He feels that the offender is sick and needs social and personal rehabilitation. Many social agencies would vary somewhere along the continuum between the classical and positive schools of criminology.31 William Dienstein investigated conflict in beliefs among police, probation and school personnel, about the causes of delinquency and concluded that "while each agency is dealing with delinquency and each may handle the same violator, their approaches to the same problem tend to take polar aspects -- control and punishment on the one hand, and treatment on the other -- and they find no route to mutual understanding, communication, and cooperation. Oonrojanowicz,‘gp. cit., pp. 45-47. 311-bid-o, pp. 45.470 21 Working at cross purposes, they cannot hope to succeed."32 E. K. Nelson, Jr. states that organizational disparity in definitions of deviance and uses of authority are key factors in the lack of unity in the Criminal Justice System.33 Pfiffner points out that the police officer cannot be labelled punitive and forgotten. The bare statistics reveal that the great preponderance of juveniles contacted, for example, are counseled and released. The juvenile officer does a great deal of referring to social agencies, mediating family situations and making arrangements for children in trouble. They regard this work as within the normal police job spectrum. They are acting as policemen and not as social workers, and they believe that their status as police- men lends strength to any activities they may perform which have helping rather than punitive goals. They reject the view that police contacts in this connection are necessarily traumatic and therefore harmful. The orthodox police view- point sees this contact with society's outward symbol of authority as wholesome and conducive of character building.34 32Dienstein, 22, cit., p. 295. 33E. K. Nelson, Jr., "Organizational Disparity in Definitions of Deviance and Uses of Authority," Police, Probation and the Schools, (Unpublished paper). 34Pfiffner, _p. 933., p. 45. 22 John Clark demonstrates that a significant portion of the police and other agency personnel manage to curtail indicated interaction in official matters, and therefore, mutually isolate each other within the social control system. This phenomenon is particularly noticeable between police and public social workers, which may reflect the presence of conflicting operating ideologies, lack of professional respect, and ignorance of the other's operations.35 This sense of isolation is a critical problem for police de- partments. Their isolation extends not only to other units within the complex of city government, but also to other police departments. Opportunity for exchange of ideas and experiences among police departments is still negligi- ble.36 Haurek and Clark develop the hypothesis that one agency will want to contact personnel of its own agency or personnel of another agency if (1) they will be able to aid him in resolving the situation, or (2) they will take responsibility for the situation and satisfactorily 35John Clark, "Isolation of the Police: A comparison of the British and American Situations," The Journal of Criminal Law and Police Science, Vol. 56, 19 5. 36Patrick V. Murphy, "Reflections on Changing Law Enforcement Problems," Federal Probation, September, 1969, pp. 10-15. 25 resolve it. The decision of whether to initiate inter- action or not will depend on whether the actor regards the other personnel as competent to effect (1) or (2). If the actor's evaluation of the personnel and their role per- formance is negative, he will be less motivated to initiate interaction and more consciously avoid it.37 Clark points out that the more voluntary organizational interaction becomes within the system, the greater the potential for dissonant influences which may conflict with the accomplishmentof'social control tasks with which the whole system is charged.50 For example, a police officer and a social worker by not working together for social control can actually contribute to the inefficient function- ing of the Criminal Justice System. Limiting one's interest to the development of good law enforcement, court reviews and corrections per se does not assure the public of good social control, unless those good services are integrated in a manner which contributes to the accomplishment of the overall goal. Those agencies with similar operating philosophies are more likely to choose each other as 37Edward w. Haurek and John P. Clark, "Variants of Integration of Social Control Agencies," Social Problems, Summer 1967, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 46-60. 38John P. Clark and Dorothy Broom Darroch, "Inter- Organizational Imagery and Relations Among Social Control Agencies in Japan," (unpublished paper, August 1968), pp. 24 professionally close and easiest to work with on problems. In another study Haurek and Clark found that inter- action depended to a great extent upon the esteem held by those in one organization for those of another. The over- all working hypothesis is that agencies with mutually favor- able images will interact with greater frequency and inti- macy than agencies with unfavorable images of each other. Extensive interaction will tend to promote a favorable image.39 McNamara sees the lack of sharing of authority within agencies as being detrimental to the individual the system 40 is attempting to serve. For example, a parolee who does not have a parole agent who is working with the police and making use of the other resources of the com- munity is increasing the parolee's likelihood of revocation. Pfiffner divides people engaged vocationally in deal- ing with violators of the law into two opposing belief systems: in the first category are the police and the custody-minded prison personnel; in the second those en- gaged in rehabilitation such as probation and parole, social 39Haurek and Clark, pp. cit., pp. 46-60. 40John H. McNamara, "The Utilization of Community Resources by One District Parole Office," (unpublished paper),l967, pp. 1-50. 25 and therapyeoriented workers in general. He labels these as "rehabs." The police and rehab stereotypes are con- stantly in a state of latent conflict which occasionally breaks out into open hostilities.41 He goes on to point out that "in a democratic society the police are agents of the people and should, therefore, be responsive to popular opinion and control, not only in the formal legal sense, but also in tune with trends of opinion and belief in the larger culture. The dominant trend in American culture in the last half century has been the gradual development of a social ethos, first manifested in the Progressivism of Teddy Roosevelt, La Follette and Woodrow Wilson, fol- lowed by the New Deal; and Eisenhower was much more centrist than rightist. The Protestant Ethic of the laissez-faire Nineteenth Century has been replaced by a social ethic which permeates all levels of our culture including the business community. This social ethic is concerned with solving the problems of juvenile delinquency, unemployment, urban congestion, ethnic discrimination and uneven distri- bution of income. This social ethic is not a radical, doctrinaire and dogmatic political movement, but is rather an unarticulated desire to bring to all of the American people the blessings of freedom and bounty."42 41Pfiffner, pp. cit., p. 4. 421bid., p. 6. 26 Pfiffner describes the policeman as having a tendency to see things in terms of black or white. He detects a mutual suspicion and antagonism between the police and social scientists. The social worker is an applied social scientist. At the same time Pfiffner cautions one to use constraint in postulating a conservative anti-rehabilita- tion stereotype to the police in general. He predicts that in spite of his distaste for therapeutic concepts, the policeman will become a member of a therapeutic team to assist in dealing with community pathology. Pfiffner reports that police often complain that there is a lack of social agencies to which they can refer problem cases. Existing agencies are overloaded. When a case is accepted, aggressive follow-through is suggested on both the part of the police officer and social worker.43 Many people today believe that society had an effec— tive law and order approach in the past. That belief is not well-founded.44 It is true that the Criminal Justice System is not efficient. Not enough offenders are arrested, convicted or rehabilitated. "But it is not true that this country ever enjoyed a Criminal Justice System that was —43161d., pp. 60-61. 44Murphy, pp, cit., p. 11. 27 effective and where the individual parts -- police, prosecution, courts and corrections -- worked together as a system."45 Sydney Harris suggests that police administrators today are fighting modern problems with outmoded methods. Police must realize that they need the help of neighborhood groups, trained social scientists, urban planners, educa- tors, doctors, ministers and professionals in allied fields more than they need more policemen and more hardware.46 The literature reveals definite problems in communica- tion, exchange, coordination, isolation, philosophy, cooperation, unity, and modes of operation between the police and the perceptions of social agency personnel. The next chapter will go into actual interviews with a select number of social agencies (five) in Muskegon, Michi- gan. The purpose of the interviews was to collect opinions and formulate questions, in order to develop a question- naire to be distributed to eleven social agencies and their personnel in the city of Muskegon. Based on the literature reviewed and these interviews it was felt that a relevant questionnaire could be developed. 431mm, p. 11. 46Sydney Harris, "Police Too Much Like Old Generals," (Publishers-Hall Syndicate, 1971), Lansing State Journal, July 16, 1971. CHAPTER III INTERVIEWS, FORMULATION OF THE HYPOTHESIS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE Setting Muskegon is the largest city on the east bank of Lake Michigan. It has a population of 55,000. It is an important lake port and a manufacturing and resort center. Its numerous industries produce automotive parts, foundry products, paper, oil, chemicals and recreation equipment. It has from eight to ten percent Black and Mexican-American population. In the summer approximately fifteen-hundred migrant workers live and work in the area. The Muskegon County United Appeal has put out a directory of Health and Welfare resources from which the agencies used for this study were selected. (See Appendix A). The choice of agency was made by comparing its function with that of other agencies in the Criminal Justice System and choosing those with the most interaction with the police. The chief of police was interviewed and he sent along a letter of introduction to help facilitate inter- views and distribution of the questionnaire. With the assistance of the police (see Appendix B) the resource 28 29 directory, the literature and past experience, the follow- ing social agencies were chosen to participate in this project: Catholic Social Service, Community Action Against Poverty, Department of Social Service, Juvenile Court, Legal Aid, Muskegon Rescue Mission, Salvation Army, the Muskegon School System, the Urban League, the West Shore Mental Health Clinic and Adult Court. Initial interviews were conducted with five of the eleven agencies. The interviews lasted from one to two hours. The purpose of the interviews was to obtain a general perception of that agency and its relationship with the Muskegon Police and develop a relevant question- naire which could be filled out at a later date by the agencies' personnel. Those agencies which were not in- terviewed were contacted in person or by phone and the project was explained to them. Full cooperation was ex- perienced at all times. Persons interviewed were individ- uals considered to be experienced and in a responsible position to give a thorough overview of the agency. The Interviews The School System. Services: The school counselor serves the student by giving him assistance in school re- lated matters, individual problems and family difficulties. Interviewees: School counselors were chosen to participate on behalf of the schools in this study. The O: 0 author attended the regular meeting of the Muskegon school district counselors and presented the study in detail. Besides the interaction with the nineteen school counselors at this meeting from which general information was gathered, two counselors, a woman and a man, were chosen to be inter- viewed in depth. Results: There is good cooperation between police and schools in Muskegon, in general. It was pointed out that the average policeman has little interaction within the school. There is not much contact between the police and the school except in crisis situations. They feel it is important that the students get to know certain officers by name rather than seeing the police as one armed force to oppress them or as "the fuzz" or "the cops" or "the pigs." The officers presently chosen to work with the schools are men to whom the young people can relate. The counselors think that a policeman should be hand picked and receive special training before he begins to work with a school. They also feel that more in-service training would be beneficial between the police, the court and the schools. Another point is that more in- formal contact could be established e.g. Head Start or a police officer invited into the classroom and his role and the laws explained. This could be done at all grade levels. More referrals could be made by the police to the school counselor. By calling the school, the police could 51 contact a particular student's counselor and an information flow and a team approach could be started. The school counselors feel that the police generally are doing a good job and that the potential for better in- teraction and less conflict depends on the effort put forth both by the counselors and the police. Legal Aid. Services: Legal Aid provides free legal service to the indigent based on established eligibility requirements. Educational programs, panels, conferences and workshops are also offered. It is federally funded with in-kind contributions by the legal profession. Interviewee: A lawyer presently working for Legal Aid. Results: Legal Aid experiences a fairly good level of cooperation from the Muskegon police in regards to the matter of trials. Certain problems are present in individ- ual policemen's attitudes. Legal Aid feels that the police do not have enough information on the purpose of their agency and some feel that Legal Aid is in an adverse position to the police. Because of this, the police are not referring many people to this agency. Legal Aid was dealing with six cases of alleged police brutality on complaints from citizens at the time of this study. 32 The Juvenile Court. Services: Jurisdiction over delinquent, neglected and dependent children. Also pro- bation, adoption and foster care services. Interviewee: A member of the administration of Juvenile Court. Results: The interviewed party from Juvenile Court has had considerable experience in juvenile court work. His general view is that the juvenile court has no significant quarrel with the police. The police have a difficult job to perform and they are doing their best. The juvenile police officer comes into the juvenile court offices everyday, and their contact with him is excellent. Contact with other police officers, however, is very limited. Comments were made on the negative aspects of police officers having second jobs and also the opinion was ex- pressed that perhaps the police should go back to walking a beat in order to have better interaction with the com- munity. It was also expressed that there is a general sympathy with the police in the difficulties of dealing with todays racial problems. It was pointed out that court personnel feel that the police do not know the extent of juvenile problems and that they should be educated to see the whole picture. 33 To send a juvenile to court does not solve the policeman's problems. Police, they feel, should know the resources, however limited, that the court has access to, both in and out of the community. The police should have instruction on the court process as part of their training. There should be police-court conferences. Police should know the limitations of the court. Legally the court can only detain a juvenile for (l) serious crimes to protect him- self and the community, (2) if he or she is a runaway or (3) if it is a case of neglect and more study and obser— vation is necessary. A police officer might not get as upset when the court releases a juvenile if he had more information on the lack of available alternatives. The police should refer more juveniles to other agencies rather than using the court as their main resource. It was pointed out that the turnover on the court staff is a problem at times and prevents the development of better relationships with the police. The court staff here had not had a turnover for two years. It was also pointed out that seven out of ten of the court staff have college degrees and this fact, it was felt, had a positive influence in their dealings with the police. The staff is open to communication and would like more police recommendations and police comments. Better cooperation 34 in the whole Criminal Justice System, they thought, should be developed. Teamwork was stressed and a combination of school theory and field experience was emphasized. Department of Social Service (D,S,S,). Services: D.S.S. provides financial assistance and casework services to individuals found eligible for any of the various wel- fare programs. It also provides direct relief and hospi- talization of needy adults; supervision and counseling for state wards and children in need of protection. Interviewee: A member of the administration of D.S.S. Results: The D.S.S. staff deal with the police in different ways depending on the area in social service in which they work. Some, like protective services, work often with the police, others have little or no contact with them. COCperation is good with the police administration. It could be better, however, between the police officer and the D.S.S. counselor. Here personalities and varying attitudes promote or discourage good communication and effective working relationships. There is a lack of knowledge of each other's role. The D.S.S. worker often feels that the police do not know how to use the power of their badge (authority). To them the policeman has lost some of the personal approach 35 and as a result he threatens people rather than warns them and there is a mutual lack of respect. They also feel that the police officer has to be educated to the limita- tions of the poor. The uniform stands as a symbol of op- pression to the poor and the policeman is often seen as a "hood with a badge." The D.S.S. worker senses a lot of misconceptions about the police from his client. The family structure has changed and the police must use other resources such as social services. Both agencies should develop more confidence in each other and make more of an effort to work together by handling individual situ- ations and learning from each other. The forming of the youth bureau was much appreciated by D.S.S. The police dispatcher, it was noted, should have better awareness of the resources available. For example, D.S.S. has a twenty- four-hour service. Police can call the agency or refer others to call the agency day and night. Police in Muskegon do refer people to D.S.S. but more referrals should be made when the police officer initially runs into what looks like a recurring problem. Often last resort problems are given to D.S.S., when only emergency measures can be taken. D.S.S. feel police are involved in social work. This does not mean casework but it does mean a community outlook and when the problem merits it a referral 36 to an agency rather than making an attempt to suppress the difficulty. The police have many resources to utilize before an arrest has to be made. Police have an obliga- tion to find out the alternatives to arrest. The D.S.S. office admits to a lack of a formal com- munications system. They are eager for more opportunities to work together. They feel the program which sends the policeman to the agency and the social worker to ride with the police is a two-way education. The educator must be educated. Policemen should come in and Speak to D.S.S. staff meetings and staff members should go to talk to policemen (in-service). If policemen feel they have their hands tied by pres- ent law requirements they should be creative and use other means, maybe better means, to accomplish their goals. Simply to complain about Supreme Court decisions does not solve the problems of the community.* If certain officers or social workers have a poor attitude they should be sent into each others agency to be educated. ¥Use of "The Officarand the Law" police training video- tapes developed by Michigan State University and available to police departments in Michigan from Michigan Law Enforce- ment Officer's Training Council are an excellent method of keeping officers informed on recent Supreme Court decisions. 37 CommunitypAction Against Poverty (C.A.A.P.). Services: The purpose of this organization is to attack the causes of poverty, to work to eliminate poverty in Muskegon and Oceana Counties and to provide equal opportunity so that all who are willing may become self sufficient. C.A.A.P. operates community centers in areas of high concentration of poverty, which serve as places where residents of the neighborhood can go to learn of services of agencies in the community to meet their needs. Interviewees: The interview with C.A.A.P. personnel was held at their main office. They invited the staff from their community centers for a joint discussion. Results: An open discussion followed in which many opinions were expressed without any hesitation. Most of the group were Black and they often expressed the fact that the Muskegon police, and police in general, are unfair to minority groups. Their main complaints are that the police stop cars driven by minorities for any reason. There is indiscriminate following of vehicles, harrassing of young- sters and an overall racist attitude. The police definitely give the image that they are better than the minority person and that they need someone under them in order to maintain this superior feeling. They want the police to be more fair in their use of authority, and also to develop 38 a better screening process for recruits, especially along attitudinal lines. They feel there should be a police governing board picked by the community and also that the police department should take more responsibility for the conduct of their men. Repeatedly the points of simple courtesy, and fairer attitude on the part of the police were raised. They ask that the same procedures be enforced for everyone. They gave as an example a squad car follow— ing a Black man driving late at night in a white neighbor- hood, and asked that the same procedures be reversed in the opposite situation, that is, he should also follow a car driven by a Caucasian late at night in a Black neighbor- hood. They feel that there is no just process of complaints of this nature. Ideas for police training center around hiring Blacks for police departments in proportion to the population. They also feel that application procedures now required to join the police department should be revised, and the people in the community should have a say in the type of test given, and what goes into the training and preparation a rookie receives. They also feel that they should play more of a role with thezmrservice training for veterans. They expressed the opinions that there should be a set time for training before a policeman goes out on the street, and that rookies should not carry weapons because a weapon only 39 shows power and force and does not encourage the new recruit to use his imagination and interaction abilities. They feel the police officer should be a peace offi- cer rather than an enforcement officer. They feel they are harassed by the police by not being allowed to travel freely in certain areas of the city. Another idea they expressed is that a black officer should be assigned to an all-white neighborhood and also that assignments should be shifted often enough to prevent political influence but not too often to prevent the community from getting to know their officers. Despite the fact that C.A.A.P. personnel were critical in a negative way, they emphasized the fact that the Muskegon police were better on the whole than other law enforcement agencies located in the greater Muskegon area. Other Agencies Involved in this Study Catholic Social Service. Services: The purpose of Catholic Social Service is to strengthen family life in the community; to encourage personal and family self- reliance and to provide substitute care for children. This agency was chosen because it was recommended by the police, the court and the Department of Social Services as serving the community especially in the area of marriage and family counseling. 4o Muskegpn Rescue Mission. Services: This provides lodging and food for transient men, women and families and provides emergency food, clothing, etc. for families. It offers counseling to individuals and families on spiritual, family and alcoholic problems and assistance in securing employment. Salvation Army. Services: The purposes of the Salva- tion Army are to preach the Gospel, disseminate Christian truths, provide personal counseling and undertake the spiritual, moral and physical rehabilitation of all persons in need who come within its sphere of influence, regard- less of race or creed. It has established a widely diver- sified program of religious and social welfare services which are designed to meet the needs of children, youth and adults in all age groups. It provides emergency family and transient relief. Both the Muskegon Rescue Mission and the Salvation Army were chosen because they provided the Criminal Justice System with a necessary resource. Both worked with the unemployed, the transient, the alcoholic and people with other family problems. The Urban League. Services: Dedicated to making equality of opportunity a reality for every citizen in the 41 community, it offers services in areas of economic develop- ment and employment, housing, education and youth incen- tives, and health and welfare. This agency also represented the minorities opinion of the Criminal Justice System. West Shore Mental Health Clinic. Services: This pro- vides services commonly rendered by a Community Mental Health Out-patient Clinic through the traditional team approach -- psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric social worker. It provides examination, diagnosis, evaluation interpretation and recommendation, therapeutic counseling and consultative educational and collaborative services to the community and its public service facilities -- schools, courts and social agencies, group therapy, etc. This agency was chosen because it represented a re- ferral agency for the police in the area of mental illness. Adult Court. Services: Adult Court provides probation and counseling services for adult offenders. The Adult Court was selected because it deals with adult offenders. Development of the Hypotheses on the Questionnaire The literature, the interviews and the direction of this study helped to formulate the following hypotheses: 42 Hypothesis 1. There will be a consensus in the per- ception of the social agencies in regard to the policeman's social awareness. Rationale: The social worker often sees the police officer as a person who is more concerned with the law being upheld than the welfare of the entire community. A series of twenty questions (seefimm I H aficnw mmsommom Mo ommpnmonmm. manammom pros mpsmmaoflpamm masonw MQDEm zH UZHB macaw emu ma eH Hence &OOH «I «I mammofl_smnhb new m a sea Henna Rum m m hpnmbom pmnfimm« moapo< hpquaaoo _MMIMMMWI @mHoPQoo panquz I >H Q5096 omnoamom mHnHmmom Hopes mpqwmaoapnmm masonw (I.Mb ommpnmopmmI ldflfiavaedta Table 2 DESCRIPTION OF PARTICIPATING AGENCY PERSONNEL ACCORDING TO AGE Percentage of Agg Number of Personnel the Total Under 25 28 24 25-29 17 15 30-34 10 8 35-39 13 11 40-44 8 7 45-49 16 14 50-54 l4 l2 . 55-59 6 5 60 and over 3 2 No Response ‘__2 .__a Total 118 100 49 tend to expect too much from the police. A person of this age group may identify more with the client than with the law. However, conversely, a young person might have a tendency to be more demanding of his client and also be less patient with his limitations. In this instance he might perceive the policeman as only doing his duty when called to handle a situation. The author feels that these two points of view would tend to counteract each other and thus balance the two approaches. It is interesting to note that 47% of the participants are thirty-four or under. This may also influence the results of this study. The educational level of the social agency personnel is very high. (See Table 3, page 50). 58% of the total group have a college degree and 36% have graduate work beyond college. This totals 74% of the group which have a college degree or better and should be considered signif- icant in looking at the results of this study. The_present position of the social agency personnel centers mainly around the role of the case worker (62%). (See Table 4, page 51). This points up the fact that many of the perceptions brought out in this study are from people who are actually working in the field and inter- acting with the citizen on the street. Combined with the school counselor this group makes up 75% of the total. Table 3 50 DESCRIPTION OF PARTICIPATING AGENCY PERSONNEL ACCORDING TO EDUCATIONAL LEVEL Educational Level Graduation from High School One year of College Two years of College Three years of College Four years of College Graduate work beyond College No Response Total Number of Personnel 10 2 10 3 45 42 IO 118 Percentage of the Total \NCDNCI) 38 36 100 Table 4 51 DESCRIPTION OF PARTICIPATING SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL ACCORDING.TO PRESENT POSITION Position Case Worker Supervisor Administrator School Case Worker (Counselor) Lawyer Psychologist Non-Professional Assistant (Community Aide, Secretary, etc.) Total Number of Personnel 73 6 IO 15 loom 118 Percentage of the Total 62 5 8 13 WM 100 52 The years of experience completed by participating social agency personnel is also a significant variable. (See Table 5, page 53). 24% have less than one year's experience. This means that their perception of the police relates more to their former contacts than to their actual experience as a social worker. It is more of a personal perception than a professional perception. 53% have three or less years of experience. Considering the high turnover rate expressed by certain administrators in the interviews this fact may be something that has to be accepted in the field of social work. One could speculate that the "do-gooder" becomes frustrated and goes on to another field. Or, on the other hand, the really creative person may think that his potential is not being realized in this structured environment and he may move into a less bureaucratic system. This could mean that the remain- ing people in the social work professions are either highly dedicated individuals or persons who are afraid to leave the security of their present positions. Their perception of the police would depend on how much of a risk taker they happen to be or how seldom they actually become involved in the community's problems. A creative risk taker is not necessarily a radical individual, but he is a person who is willing to learn from the police as well as try to Table 5 DESCRIPTION OF SOCIAL AGENCY PERSONNEL ACCORDING TO YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN SOCIAL AGENCY WORK Number of Percentage of Years of Expanigpgg Personnel the Total Less than 1 year 28 24 1-3 years 34 29 4-6 years 14 12 7-10 years 13 11 11-15 years 10 8 16-20 years 7 6 21-25 years 5 4 26 or more years 3 3 No Response __4_ _3 Total 118 100 affect police behavior. Too often the social worker puts in his time but does not change the situation for the better. There might be a tendency for a person who has been in social work for a long period of time to become hardened to people's problems because it is easier for him and in his opinion the quickest way out. In the following chapter some of these descriptive characteristics will be developed further. CHAPTER V ANALYSIS The data from the questionnaire were compiled, coded and key punched on I.B.M. cards. Data analysis was done at the Computer Institute for Social Science Research (CISSR), Michigan State University, on the Control Data Corporation (C.D.C.) 3600. The data was put through hierarchical clustering based on a Criterion of Largest Average Within-Custer Similarity (L.A.W.S.). Cluster analysis was used to reduce the redundancy of the data and legitimize the composite scores or the summated scale. This method of hierarchical clustering analyzes the structure of interrelationships among a set of variables, or other entities, and constructs a number of successively more inclusive subsets of these. It forms subsets of variables in a manner which keeps within-cluster correla- tions high and between cluster correlations low. Basically, the hierarchy of more inclusive clusters is formed by identifying the most closely interrelated pairs of variables which have members in clusters already accepted. The ex- panded and/or united clusters indicated by the intersections 55 of pairs of variables with existing clusters are then evaluated. Decisions regarding the acceptance or rejection of possible new clusters are based on the average correlations among the variables in a cluster. These averages are calu— lated from all pairwise interrelationships among the variables. The basic decision rule is that groupings with the largest average within-pluster similarities (l.a.w.s.) are accepted.47 (See Table 12 for cluster results.) The computer program was Technical Report Number 14 (T.R.l4), Analysis of Contingency Tables (A.C.T.). Bivari- ate contingency table analysis was employed. The statistical analysis utilized was the chi-square test for significance and the level of significance chosen was the .05 level. Hypothesis I Social Awareness. There will be a consensus in the per- ception of the social agencies in regard to the policeman's social awareness. Social awareness was defined as high if the social agency personnel thought the police officer had a good view of the total needs of the entire citizenry. It 47See Leighton A. Price, "Hierarchical Clustering Based on a Criterion of Largest Average Within-Cluster Similarity," Technical Report No. 70-1, Computer Institute for Social Science Research, Michigan State University, 1970, for a more complete description. 57 was defined as low if the social agency personnel considered the police officer to be classified as a person who had primarily a strict law enforcement approach to his job. (See Table 6, page 58.) In this study it was found that the private agencies (71%), the public agencies (56%) and the schools (57%) felt that the police had a high level of social awareness. The courts were split (50%) and the minority centered agencies considered police social awareness as very low (7%). Chi- square = 34.8, D.F. = 5, P<.OOl. This hypothesis was rejected. Seven items out of a possible twenty were chosen for the social awareness cluster or the social awareness scale based on the index of discrimination and difficulty: items 7, 10, 12, 13, 14, 16 and 17. Items 10 and 16 were reversed before summation. (See Appendix C, pages 1-2). The private agencies were the only group that had a relatively high score (71%). This perception may be due to the fact that the private agencies often received their clients through a referral. The Catholic Social Service deals with many marital problems and the West Shore Mental Health Clinic deals with mainly mental problems. Their contact with the police then would be more in a positive vein than the courts or Legal Aid, for example. The other two private agencies, the Muskegon Rescue Mission and the 58 HOO . V m m u .m.m O.4N u museum HHO W. a _ i m a H mHH OOH” OH OOH . HH OOH I 4H OOH 1 4mm JOH OH OOH HOPOO I i 1 Hm m4 1 m HH _ mH mm s Om ¢NW,H4 m ON 30H I.” M H I . 2 _ NO 1mm W AH mm m H W s I O Om Om” Om OH H» HmHm H r m m z m4 2 HH OH H. “H mu : Ow Haves mHoonom woaopsoo mpndoo oaapdm mpm>aam 338$ mmmzmm<3< H4Hoom MOHAOm mo ZOHemmOmmm m.AMZZOmmmm Nozmw< m mapma 59 Salvation Army work mainly with transients and people with alcohol problems. Their contact with the police would be more direct but again they are doing a service for the police and, therefore, their relationship would tend to be one of cooperation and mutual respect. The public agencies and the school counselors scored approximately the same. They were, however, almost equally divided in their perception of police socialawareness. It would be difficult to say that they were significantly con- vinced as a group that the police were socially aware of the total needs of the city. This divided opinion could be related to age, years of experience, and the philosophical differences of treatment and punishment. The courts were divided exactly equal on this question. The courts have to answer to the police and at the same time try to correct some of the police officer's mistakes. It is not surpris- ing that they are then equally divided in their opinion of police social awareness. The agencies who work more with minority groups did not feel that the police were socially aware (7%). This would correspond to the literature and the interviews where oppression, harassment, racism, unequal treatment and opportunity, and the lack of participating power in decision making have been claimed. If the minority person perceives 6O himself in this position, it stands to reason that he will view the police as the one who is maintaining this condi- tion for the majority. The hypothesis that there will be a consensus in the perception of the social agencies in regard to the police- man's social awareness must be rejected. Various agencies will look upon the policeman's social awareness differently depending on the amount of contact, the kind of contact and the purpose of the contact. Hypothesis II Use of Resources. There will be a consensus among social agency personnel regarding the acceptance and aware- ness of police utilization of community resources. (See Table 7, page 61). This hypothesis states that social agency personnel will accept the choice a police officer should make in making a referral and that they are aware of the alternatives a police officer has. Social agency personnel often claim that the policeman does not refer enough to other agencies. Questions were chosen to deter- mine if social agency personnel could agree on the right choice that a police officer should make. This means the police officer has to be aware of the available resources and choose the correct one for a given problem. It also requires the social worker to know the available resources. 61 HOO. Vm m n .59 O.HN u unseen HOO OHH OOH OH OOH 4H OOH 4H OOH 4m OOH OH OOH Hmpea m4 . an O O4 OH HO O 4H mH ram HH mm 30H ms HO OH mm 4 ON NH Ow H4 Os O mm HmHm z a7 z a z 1w} 2 am OH Wu z a7 Hneoe mHoonom Oenepqeo mensoo eHHpsm memeHnm seHnonHzm mmompommm MBHZDSSOO mo ZOHB¢NHHHBD WOHHOQ mo mmmagzdw n52 MHGH/jwamnm09.4fl m..Hmz.zommmm Hob/Ema. N. magma It may happen that an agency or a worker may not approve of a given resource. Public agencies (76%), the courts (86%) and the schools (55%) indicated that in their estimation police were aware of and used the proper resources. The fact that these three groups responded positively could be accounted for by the fact that they are all public services and are the most known available resources. The courts were the highest on this particular scale and it would appear logically that the police would refer many of their cases to the court system. The problem still would remain that there may be better alternatives for the police than sending a person to court. The schools again are a public agency for the most part and it would seem that public agencies, in general, have a tendency to cooperate with each other to a higher degree. Private agencies, on the other hand, expressed the opinion that they saw the police not as aware of resources and they were not willing to accept the way police use available resources. Only 35% felt that police were doing an adequate job in this area. The reason that the police may not use a private agency is that either they do not know the services of a given agency or it is more convenient to refer them to a public agency. 63 The minority centered agencies again strongly felt the police were not aware of certain resources and they were not willing to accept the resources that police were using. Only 29% considered the police as adequate in this area. It is interesting to speculate in this area what minority people think about public and private agencies, the courts, and the schools as possible resources. They may not accept some of these resources as responsible institutions for their needs. They may see their own agencies as more concerned and more effective in their neighborhood. They might also see the police as not reSpecting and using their agencies as alternatives to court action or public agency referrals. The total percentages on this hypothesis were 61% high and 39% low. Nine questions were chosen for the item analy- sis based on the index of discrimination and difficulty. (See Table 8, p. 64). Questions 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 11 and 14 were chosen. (See Appendix C, pages 3—6). Chi-square was 218. Degrees of freedom were 5. P<.OOl. The hypothesis was rejected. There was not a consensus among social agen- cy personnel regarding the acceptance and awareness of police utilization of community resources. Hypothesis III Importance of Police Function. There will be a con- sensus among social agency personnel and their perception Table 8 INDEXES OF DISCRIMINATION AND DIFFICULTY ON QUESTIONS PERTAINING TO ACCEPTANCE AND AWARENESS OF POLICE UTILIZATION OF COMMUNITY RESOURCES Index of Index of Question Discrimination Difficulty l 41 50 2 52 33 3 38 26 4 62 50 6 48 77 7 45 18 8 38 32 ll 21 9 14 58 61 65 of those tasks for which policemen should be responsible. This hypothesis was divided into three sections: special services, minor law enforcement and major law enforcement. In the area concerned with special services (see Table 9, page 66) to the community (e.g. family crisis interven- tion, neighbor dispute mediator, etc.) only the minority centered agencies (71%) saw this as having high priority as a police function. As was pointed out by the literature the minority races and the poor call upon the police as a resource where middle class people would seek out another type of resource (e.g. private marriage counseling) rather than call in the police. This may also reflect that many of the social agency personnel are middle class themselves and tend to think that policemen should not be bothered for many of the special services that they are called upon to perform for minority groups. It may also indicate that the social workers would prefer to handle many of these services themselves either because they feel they are better trained or they feel the police are not doing an adequate job in this area. It is interesting to speculate that perhaps police officers get tired of answering many of these calls especially when they are repeated by the same party. The police officer's handling of this type of situation may become too routine or too drastic. In turn, Ln I! r; {:q OHH O.OOH OH OOH HH OOH 1“ cm OOH OH OOH Hosea mm .m.mm H mm H mm o Hm ” Om O OH mm 33 mm m.ee O Om OH HO mm m4 O H4 rmHm z a. z a. z u{ m m, z m H8909 mHoosom Omnopnoo oaansm opw>flnm OHHHoaHzr mMogmmm HOIHOmmm wZHdewmm ZOHBOZHE MOHHOHH mo ZOHBBmommm m.HmHHH.HOmmmm MOEU< m OHpma 67 the client may not appreciate this type of treatment and he may aggrevate the situation all the more. This presents a dilemma for the minority citizen. He has only the police to turn to for many of these special services but in turning to the police conflict arises. Social agencies who serve minority groups then perceive the police as hostile and the conflict mounts. The other agencies taper off on this question of special services according to their own contact and inter- action with the police. The courts are 43% in favor as are the public agencies. The private agencies are 41% in favor and the schools who probably have the least inter— action with the police are at the 37% level. The total percentages are 44.5% high and 55.5% low. Chi-square is 5.5. There are 5 degrees of freedom. The difference is not significant, and the hypothesis is accepted. There is a consensus among social agency personnel and their perception of the importance of Special services as a police function. There is no significant difference among agency personnel regarding the importance of police performing special services to citizens. Items 3, 20, and 21 were sub- mitted to cluster analysis. (See Table 12, page 72 and Appendix C, pages 7-8): 68 The second section of hypothesis three deals with minor law enforcement (see Table 10, page 69), e.g. arrest- ing intoxicated persons, gambling, prostitution. Private agencies saw this as important (59%). Three of the four private agencies surveyed were church centered agencies and would probably be more critical of this type of behavior than personnel from another agency. The minority centered agencies were split 50% to 50% on this question. This might reflect the ambivalence between having too strong a law enforcement and a desire to change some of the ex- ploitation of ghetto residents. Public agencies (48%), the courts (43%) and the schools (37%) registered their feelings accordingly. Public agencies have to deal with the results of drinking to excess, etc., while the courts have to process these offenses. The school counselors have to face these questions only as they affect the children and the school. The total percentages regarding the importance of minor law enforcement were 47% high and 53% low. Items 6, 10, 15, and 23 were chosen for cluster analysis (see Table 121gpage 72 and Appendix C pages7-8). Chi-square was 2.8 with D.F. = 5. There was no significant difference among the social agency personnel regarding minor law enforcement. They were similar in degree to which they felt minor law enforcement was important. 69 l I C Q . FT" F—I HHOoHHHdOHm sea m O.m u cacsOn HOO .m.m _ OHH OOH OH OOH HH OOH 4H OOH Hm OaH OH OOH Hares m . . 1 NO mm NH OO O Om m I Om mm mm O HO soH 1 Om OH O Om O Om O 4 me Om me Q OH Om HOHm z ,N z m 2 .O 2 O m “N 2 OO Hspoe mHoosom OOHOPSOU mphdoo OHHnsm membfinm Oeaaoama Bzmszmomzm 3HHm OpmnonH: EZMEMOmOmzm 3 u. 6. How much formal education have you had? (Circle highest year completed) High School 1 2 3 a quvalency certificate College (Undergraduate) l 2 3 a College (Graduate) 1 2 3 a 5 6 7 8 or over ‘____(15) 7. Major field in college (16) 8. what degree(s) held (17) 9. Total years of experience in your present type of work: Less than 1 1-3 4-6 7-10 11-15 16-20 21-25 26 or more (18) 10. Please check the Agency in which you presently are working: Catholic Social Service Community Action Against Poverty Dept. of Social Service Juvenile Court legal Aid Muskegon Rescue Mission Salvation Army School System Urban League West Shore Mental Health Clinic Other (please specify) ___(l9) ll. Present position Case‘worker Supervisor Administration School case worker lawyer Other (please specify) 20) ____( INSTRUCTIONS: Below is a list of statements. about these statements. 1. Our agency works well with the Mmkegon Police Dept. 2. There should be more team work among agencies and the police department. 3..A policeman should be involved in social work to Scale ment 0 4. A policeman should refer many more cases to social agencies than he does. 5. A policeman usually does not have a total community outlook. 6. Certain specific police- znen should be selected to ‘work with young people. 7. Policemen, in general,do not know the causes of juvenile problems. 8. Most community agencies including the police do not 'work together enough. 9. Police officers, in gen- eral, do not know very much about social agencies. 10. Police officers should be more peace officer and less enforcgment officer. 11. There should be more in-service training in police dept. and social agencies. 12. Police officers in Mbskegon are more authoritarian than humanitarian toward the pUblICe (Check one box for each statement) - .i-.— .— m Strongly Agree omewhat Slightly Do no rAgree more tha gree agree agree Disagree at all L“- , -.._.__ .. ...-..._.-...._.__1..-._.__.-...-.a...-.....- .._......1._...____._.... I E l We would like to have your Honest opinion «31) (22) (23) (24) (25) (26) (27) (28) (29) (30) (31) (32) L 2 Strongly Agree agree more the. diseases omewhat Agree Slightly Agree Do not agree at all 13. The Mbskegon policeman has not kept up with the changing social scene. (33) 14. The Muskegon policeman usually does not consider a possible referral to an agency rather than an arrest 15. In General, there is a poor communication system between agency personnel and police personnel. 16. The community should have more of an opportunity to directly influence police behavior. (34) (35) I (36) 17. To my knowledge, there have been too many cases of Muskegon policemen not treating Minority people fairly. 18. To my knowledge, there have been too many cases of Muskegon policemen not treating juveniles fairly. 19. Do you see your agency as copperating with the police! 20. Do you think the publicGI knows the role of the polic dept? (37) , (38) (39) (40) INSTRUCTIONS: The following are situations commonly confronting a police officer. YOur task is to select in your estimation the best solution for handling each situation. Circle one letter (a, b, c, d, e) preceeding the soulution which you have chosen. 1. 2. 3. 4. Do not write An officer is called to a residence where a husband and wife here who have recently separated are arguing over the possession of property held for lein. If one party attempts to remove property from the premises, the officer should: (41) a. Arrest the party removing the property. b. Advise the other party to call legal aid. c. Advise the other party to contact the Department of Social Services (marriage counselling). d. Attempt to persuade both parties involved to settle down, with the idea of taking no further action. e. Other (please indicate) An officer finds a family without heat and lights due to suspension of utilities. He should: (42) a. Call the Michigan Employment Security Commission. b. Call the Welfare - Department of Social Services. c. Call MUskegon County Health Department. d. Advise the family to contact a social agency. e. Other (please indicate) Officers investigate an anonymous report of children having been left by parents without supervision while parents are ”working. Thecpoliconan'should: (43) a. Take the children to the Juvenile Division of Probate Court (child neglect). b. Call Day Care Center Incorporated. c. Call Welfare - Department of Social Services. d. Take the children to the Muskegon Children's Home. e. Other (please indicate) Officers find young children playing on street late at night and discover that the mother is "entertaining" men friends. The officers should: (44) a. Notify Probate Court. b. Call the welfare - Department of Social Services. c. Notify the Family Counselling Service. d. Take the children home and advise the mother to be more responsible. e. Other (please indicate) 5. Officers respond to a disturbance call and discover that a father has been beating his children. Father, out of work, is also under the influence. The officers should: a. Call Welfare - Department of Social Services. b. Notify JUvenile Division of Probate Court (child neglect). c. Advise the father to call Michigan Employment Security Coumission for a job. d. Call AA and advise them of the situation. e. Other (please indicate) 6. Officers solve a malicious destruction complaint and find out 7. 8. that several highschool drOpouts are involved. The officers should: a. Notify the counselling department of public school. b. Call the MESC in order to obtain jobs for dropouts. c. Contact the Welfare - Department of Social Services. d. Take the youths to JUvenile Division of Probate Court. e. Other (please indicate) Officers respond to a re-occurring domestic problem complicated by drinking on the part of both parties. The officers should: a. Call the Michigan Society for Mental Health. b. Notify the local A.A. c. Have the couple work their problems through the Department of Social Services Omarriage counselling). d. Calm the couple down and warn them about their behavior. e. Other (please indicate) Officers investigate report by neighbors that an elderly woman has not been seen for a length of time. The woman is located and found to be in need of care. The officers should: a. Notify the Welfare - Department of Social Services. b. Advise the neighbors to call Muskegon General Hospital. c. Notify their immediate supervisor. d. Call visiting Nurse Association. e. Other (please indicate) Officers observe a gang of youths hanging around gas stations, pool halls, drug stores, etc. The officers should: a. Make sure the youths do not congregate in the above places. b. Call the public school counselor. c. Contact the City Athletic Program Director. d. Get in touch with Michigan Employment Security Commission. e. Other (please indicate) Do not write here (45) _____(46) ' (47) (48) __(‘9) 10. ll. 12. 13. Ce d. Ge Do not write here Officers observe a subject drunk in a public place and learn that he has no address or job. The officers should: ____i50) a. Take the person to Muskegon General Hospital. b. Arrest the person. c. Take the person to the Salvation Army or the Muskegon Rescue Mission. d. Notify Welfare - Department of Social Services. 9. Other (please indicate) Officers make a home arrest and notice unsafe wiring and 'other sub-standard conditions. The officers should: 11) a. Notify the Office of Economic Opportunity. b. Contact Salvation Army. Call the Building Inspection Department. Take no action on the sub-standard housing conditions. Other (please indicate) Officers are called to a home where an argument is in progress between a white person who is selling his home on the open market and a black man'who is interested in purchasing it but has been refused permission to see it. The officers should: (52) D. cs 6. e. Attempt to calm down both parties involved and then take no further action. Advise the black person to call the local board of realtors. Advise the Negro to contact the.Michigan Civil Rights Commission. Advise the Negro to contact legal aid. Other (please indicate) Officers observe a subject drunk who alleges he is depressed because he has just been terminated from a plant where he has been employed for eighteen years. He is black and feels he was discharged because his new foreman "does not like colored peOple". The officers should: (53) as b. cs do Go Arrest the black person for being drunk. Advise the black person contact the Michigan Employment Security Omission. Have the black person notify the MCRC. Advise the black person to call legal aid. Other (please indicate) Do not write here 14. In discussing a family problem with parents, an officer discovers they are upset because their son uses drugs. The officers should: (54) a. b. c. d. Advise the parents to discuss the problem with the public school counselor. Advise the parents to take the son to their family doctor for a check up. Advise the parents to take their son to the West Shore Mental Health Clinic. Advise the parents to cooperate with a detective who will make a thorough investigation. Other (please indicate) 15. Officer encounters a neglect situation'which is not serious enough to refer to Probate Court but where the mother feels helpless and mixed up about herself. The officer should: (55) as D. co d. Advise mother to go to the General Hospital. Contact the West Shore Mental Health Clinic. Advise the mother to contact the Community Action Against Poverty, Incorp. Advise the mother to ”pull herself together" or more serious actions will be taken. Other (please indicate) 16. In discussing a run-away youth pattern'with the youth's parents, the parents admit they would welcome help as their parent-child relationship is poor. The officer should: (56) a. b. c. d. O. Advise the parents to call legal aid. Advise the parents to take their son to the West Shore Mental Health Clinic. Advise the parents to contact MESC regarding a job for their son. Refer the parents to JUvenile Division of Probate Court for counselling. Other (please indicate) INSTRUCTIONS: How important various tasks? 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. l6. l7. l8. 19. Below is a list of tasks for which MDSkegon Policemen are responsible. is it to you for the police to be responsible for these (Check one square on each line.) Ve it Im- - port ort ant t Person(s) fighting in a bar. 1y ' light at Im- ortant' All Kids violating curfew. Handling family disputes. Persons breaking into a business. Assisting a stalled motorist. Arresting a drunk walking down the sidewalk. Quieting a neighbor's barking dog. Handling an unwanted guest complaint. Quieting down a loud party. Stamping out prostitution. Searching for a missing child. look for youths who have run away from home. Responding to a burglar alarm. Responding to a fire alarm. Stamping out gambling. Helping with school traffic. Escorting businessmen with large sums of money to banks. Transporting sick persons who have no car to the hospital. Checking on persons who have been bitten by animals. Do not write here (9) _ _____(11) _____<12) (13) ____ _<15) ___<16) __<17) ____<13) (19) ___<20) ___(21> _____<22) ____<23> (24) (25) (26) (27) 20. 21. 22. 23. 26. 25. We Ar ite Esme ‘ light ot im- 00 not im- - at 1y ortant write 'port: or: m- 711- All here lant t port ort TL Assisting two neighbors in settling a dispute. “ (28) Assisting a tenant and landlord in settling a dispute. (29) Investigating attempted suicide cases ‘____(30) Checking I. D. of a person who looks as if he has something to hide. ____(31) Responding to a prowler call. _______(32) In general, do you feel that other members of your agency agree with your opinion of those tasks for which police should be responsible? (Circle your answer) Nearly Most Some A Few None all Agree Agree Agree Agree Agree (33) INSTRUCT IONS l. 2. 3. 4. How would you picture the job of a polio-nan in Maskegon at the present time? Make a check in the spaces to indicate your answer. Per mp1s: With respect to satistsction of the position: I/ 1 J L 1 i i Very High 1 fiairly,r [Moderately [mite low in High m in Satis- Satisfaction faction Do not A check in the first space in the ample shows that the reader write felt that police work in Muskegon is a very highly satisfying job. here With respect to the general prestige of the position: (36) l 1 i l L i Very High T Tl’airly l Moderately} Vpite low In Prestige High low In Prestige With respect to the degree of influence policemen have in comanity affairs: (35) l i i i 1 Very High‘ airly ‘ \Moderatelyi \Qaite low Degree of High low Degree of Inf luence Inf in once With respect to the social position of policemen in the coumnity: __(36) i l i x i i Very High‘ \fairly \ Moderatelfl \Qsite low Social High Low Social Position ' Position With respect to the econolnic position of policeman in the comanity: (37) I i l i l i Very High‘ Eairlyl [Moderately' \QAite low Economic igh - Low Economic Position Position l. 2. 3. 4. 8. 10 INSTRUCTIONS: Below is a list of statements. HONEST opinion about these statements. We would like to have your (Check one square per statement.) Strong- Agre%fiSame-SlightJ Do , 1y more what ly Not Agra than Agreefigree Agree Dis- at Alh Agree If a patrolman thinks he may have to use force in a situation he should use it right after his entrance into the situation in order to gain the advantage of surprise. . . . Some force is necessary and justified when a citizen unjustly insults or curses a police officer. . . . If patrolman working in the tough neighborhoods had more leeway and fewer restrictions on the use of force many of the serious police problems in these neighborhoods would be greatly reduced. e e e Respect for the police in a predominantly Negro neighborhood depends on the willingness of patrolman to use force frequently and effectively. . . . Police officers almost never receive the c00peration from the oredominantl Negro area that is needed to DrOperly handle police work. . . . The best way to get cooperation from a Negro is to indicate that you mean business . . . . When officers indicate they will use the force necessary to gain compliance from a citizen they are helped considerably if the citizen thinks they are getting angry. . . . When a policeman is called to a ,. situation involving a family dispute, the officer should reflect the attitud that he has been called to help all citizens involved. . . . Do Not write Here (38) (39) (40) (41) (42) (43) (an) (45) 9. Generally, Negroes are appreciative when police officers go out of their way to be nice to then. . . . 10. An officer can be pretty sure he wil 11. 13. gain control of the situation which involves a Negro man if he somewhat frightens him. . . . In a situation where two men are fighting in a public place, generally it is best to arrest both of the men immediately. . . . When deciding on whether to arrest for a misdemeaner offense, extenuating circumstances should be weighed heavier than the fact that a law has been violated. . . . When considering any type of offense, the police officer is bound by the 18W. e e e 11 -—---..-..-- n...- étrong-IngreeiSome-Slight-Do m I Do not 1y more Iwhat 1y Not a Write I Agree than IAgredAgree Egree ’ Here LDis. i he AlJ ._- ..__._.1 AEECEL.-- -... ' ; ”I I I I ' I I I i I I . I (46> l_,..._..-... .....-....____.T.._.. --__;g- .. ._..... _. I , I I I I . I I : I I I I (47) | I - ' I | ' I I (48) l I. I— (49) I I , (50) §-_._. __J m.-.«_a INSTRUCTIONS: 12 The following are questions frequently asked by social agency personnel. Answer them as you see their relationship to your agency. (Circle the best answer.) Do Not Write Here i. What kind of a relationship do you see between your agency and the Muskegon Police Dept. ____(51) as b. Ce de 9e Excellent Good Average Poor None of the Above (Please explain) 2. When do you think policemen should carry guns? (52) ae b. Ce d. as All of the time on duty Only on "serious" occasions eg. burglary Only carry weapons in police ears but not on person unless serious danger exists. None of the time. None of the above (Please Explain) 3. Police are adequately trained for: ____(53) 3e b. ca do Go all situations they face most situations they face few of the situations they face almost none of the situations they face None of the above (Please explain) a. Social Agencies and the police department need the most work in 8e b. Ce d. 9e the area of: (54) communication public relations c00peration role definition other (Please indicate) 5. The way to help eliminate some . = problems between social agencies and the police department is: (55) ae be Ce d. 9e to have more in-service training to have better exposure in the press to have the community participate more in the policy making to continue with present policy other (Please indicate) 13 6. If you in your work have to deal with the Muskegon Police Dept. you feel you would: a. have no trouble getting cooperation b. leave it go for someone else to handle 0. not bother even trying d. work around the police department e. other (Please indicate) 7. Would you as a member of a social agency be willing to work with the Muskegon Police Department on a mutual learning basis for one week each year eg. ride in squad car, have policeman observe you in your work? a. Yes, gladly b. Yes, with reservations Ce Maybe d. No e. Other (Please indicate) 8. In your opinion most policeman in the Mbskegon Police Dept. are: a. good, competent man be like all pOIICQnen in the UeSeAe c. Average d. Poorly trained for today's problems. e. other (Please indicate) 9. In your opinion, the families you deal with sea the police as: a. good, competent men b. like all policemen in the U.S.A. c. average d. poorly trained for today's problems a. other (Please indicate) 10. An answer to some of the problems in social agency-police relations would be: a. more respect for each other's professions b. more team work in community problems. c. less defensive attitude on both sides d. less research and more common sense e. other (Please indicate.) (56) (57) ___<58) (59) (60) 16 INSTRUCTIONS: the Mbskegon police. appropriate space following each statement. In the following section you are asked questions about Express your opinion by checking the (Each state- ment is preceded by a number) In the course of your work, you find a situation.which is best handled by the Muskegon police, to what degree do you: 1. 2. 3. Almost always Often times Never Ayoid- . the situation [ Turn to someone else for aid ‘ Take care of things yourself rathe than contacting the police Would you evaluate the Muskegon police according to the following Gogg_ Fair Poor criteria: a. Type of persons they are, in general 5. Their knowledge of how to handle matters related to your work _ 6. The actual way they handle matters related to your work 7. Their working relationship with your organization 8. The emphasis they put upon the welfare of the whole community 9. The emphasis they put upon the welfare of ‘ the individual 10. Their freedom from non-professional influence (like personal interests and those of politi- cians, and others) 11. Everything about the Muskegon police (being evaluated) in general L Do not write here ,___<61> ____(62) ____(63) ____<6A) ____<65) ___,<66) ____<67) ____<68) __(69) ____<7o> ____<71> CONCLUSION We want to thank you again for your time. We hOpe you realize that every questionnaire has its limitations. Many of the questions you have answered are being answered by the police and citizens at random in the community. This makes your response all the more valuable. If there are any constructive criticisms or additional statements please make them. We hope this survey will benefit your community and its work. cameras: (72) APPENDIX D LETTER OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT TO PARTICIPATING AGENCIES January 8, 1970 Dear Sir: Enclosed you will find a number of questionnaires dealing with social-agency-police relations. We talked to you earlier in December asking if you and your personnel would cooperate in taking the time to fill out the questionnaire and make any suggestions you feel would be beneficial. As you know, this questionnaire is part of a three-part program dealing with the social agencies’outlook towards the Muskegeon police, the community's concept of the Huskegon police and the actual training programs within the Muskegon police department. We now ask that you fill out the questionnaires and we will be back to pick them up on Januaryzl6, 1970. If there are any late arrivals please send them to Mr. Thomas Christian 806-204 Cherry Lane East Lansing, Michigan 68823 or call (517) 355-7939 t Thank you again for your help. We hope the results of this will serve you in your future work with the MUskegon Police. /Sincere%y, \/ a} ”War '3 Lt‘fi‘ ' Thomas Christian NOV 1 2 NEW