Applied Research in Action
Write a 750- to 1,050-word essay responding to the following scenario:
The city police chief reaches out to you knowing your applied research experience. The department has recently had an increase in citizen complaints and officer use-of-force incidents. The chief is considering adopting the use of body-worn cameras (BWCs) but would like to understand research on their effectiveness. She finds you well qualified to provide some direction in this regard.
She has asked that you thoroughly review the research article entitled “Exploring the Potential for Body-Worn Cameras to Reduce Violence in Police–Citizen Encounters,” published in Policing, and prepare an essay for her in which you address each of the following elements:
· Describe the primary purpose of the study (exploration, description, explanation, or evaluation). What were the research questions that the study was designed to answer?
· List the key independent and dependent variables, identifying the causal relationships the researchers sought to examine. Explain how the researchers conceptualized and operationalized the dependent variables.
· Explain the time dimension of the study and how it impacted data collection. Describe whether the study involved a cross-sectional or longitudinal design and whether data were collected retrospectively or prospectively.
· How did the researchers test to see whether BWCs were related to the study dependent variables?
· What were the results of the study in terms of each of the causal relationships examined? In discussing the findings, be sure to distinguish the study participant groups in terms of outcomes between the separate groups, as well as changes over time within each group. Discuss unusual study findings, noting any changes in conditions under which the study was conducted and other potential reasons these results might have occu
ed.
· Discuss the themes that emerged from the study, providing recommendations to the police chief regarding use of BWCs.
Be sure to cite your sources in the body of your paper and list them on your reference page, consistent with APA guidelines. Remember, applied research is not common knowledge, so it is important to cite to all of your sources of information.
Exploring the Potential for Body-Worn Cameras to Reduce Violence in Police–Citizen Encounters
1
Article
Exploring the Potential for Body-Worn
Cameras to Reduce Violence in
Police–Citizen Encounters
Michael D. White*, Janne E. Gaub** and Natalie Todak***
Abstract One of the most compelling perceived benefits of body-worn cameras (BWCs) involves the potential for
eductions in citizen complaints and police use of force. A handful of early studies reported significant reductions in
oth outcomes following BWC adoption, but several recent studies have failed to document such effects. The cu
ent
study explores this question using data from a randomized controlled trial conducted in the Spokane (WA) Police
Department. Approximately half of patrol officers (n = 82) were assigned BWCs in May 2015, while the other half
(n = 67) received their BWCs 6 months later (November XXXXXXXXXXThe study explores the effects of BWCs on use of force,
complaints against officers, and officer injuries, using more than three years of official department data pre- and post-
BWC deployment. The outcomes of interest are rare in Spokane, which limited both statistical power and the results
from significance testing. However, the within-group trends are consistent with a positive effect, particularly for
percent change. Following BWC deployment, the percentage of officers with a complaint in each group declined by
50% and 78% (Control and Treatment, respectively); the percentage of officers with a use of force declined notably
(39%) for one group only. The reductions disappeared after 6 months for the Treatment group. There was no
elationship between BWCs and officer injuries. The authors discuss the implications of the findings for the ongoing
dialogue on BWCs.
Introduction
that occu
ed during the 1960s (Kerner Commis-
A persistent undercu
ent of racial tension has been sion, 1968, p XXXXXXXXXXFifty years later, the final report
one of the defining features of American law en- of the President’s Task Force on 21st Century
forcement over much of the last century (White Policing (2015, p. 5) again pointed to low reserves
and Fradella, XXXXXXXXXXIn 1968, the National of trust and police legitimacy in minority commu-
Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders con- nities as the explanation for civil unrest following
cluded ‘deep hostility between police and ghetto police killings of citizens in Ferguson (MO),
communities’ was a primary cause of the riots Baltimore (MD), and other cities across the US:
*Arizona State University, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Phoenix, AZ, USA. E-mail: XXXXXXXXXX
**Arizona State University, Center for Violence Prevention and Community Safety, Phoenix, AZ, USA
***University of Alabama, Birmingham, Department of Justice Sciences, Birmingham, AL, USA
Policing, pp. 1–11
doi:10.1093/police/paw057
© The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.
For permissions please e-mail: XXXXXXXXXX
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mailto: XXXXXXXXXX
mailto: XXXXXXXXXX
2 Policing Article M. D. White et al.
‘In establishing the task force, the President spoke
of the distrust that exists between too many police
departments and too many communities—the
sense that in a country where our basic principle
is equality under the law, too many individuals,
particularly young people of color, do not feel as
if they are being treated fairly.’
The Task Force XXXXXXXXXXfinal report identified
nearly 60 recommendations for building trust be
tween police and citizens, and body-worn cameras
(BWCs) are highlighted as a tool for achieving that
objective. Since 2015, the White House and the US
Department of Justice have strongly promoted the
adoption of BWCs by police, as evidenced by the
creation of a National Body-Worn Camera Toolkit
(Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2016a), a federal
funding program that has provided $40 million to
more than 175 law enforcement agencies for the
purchase of BWCs (Department of Justice, 2016),
and a training and technical assistance mechanism
that facilitates BWC adoption and program man
agement (Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2016b).
Proponents of BWCs have made numerous claims
egarding the benefits of the technology, including
that BWCs can reduce violence during police-citizen
encounters (White, XXXXXXXXXXA number of early studies
eported significant reductions in citizen complaints
against officers and police use of force following de
ployment of BWCs, suggesting the technology can
produce measurable change in these two important
outcomes. An evaluation of BWCs in the Rialto (CA)
Police Department documented a nearly 90% drop
in citizen complaints against police, and a 60% de
cline in use of force by officers (Ariel et al., 2015).
Similarly, positive results have emerged from studies
in Mesa (AZ; Mesa Police Department, 2013),
Orlando (FL; Jennings et al., 2015), and Tampa
(FL; Sullivan and Ma
ero, XXXXXXXXXXHedberg and col
leagues XXXXXXXXXXestimated the effect of BWCs on citi
zen complaints in Phoenix (AZ) and concluded ‘if
BWCs are employed as prescribed [i.e., 100 percent
activation compliance], a majority of complaints
against officers would be eliminated’ (p. 16).
However, several recent studies have failed to
document positive effects on citizen complaints
and use of force. A study by the Edmonton Police
Service XXXXXXXXXXconcluded BWCs had no measurable
impact on either outcome. Grossmith et al. (2015)
found a statistically significant decline in citizen
complaints in only two of the ten London police
oroughs examined.3 Ariel and colleagues (2016c,
p. 2) described findings from ten BWC studies and
concluded the technology ‘had no effect on use of
force’ overall, but the null finding was explained by
mixed results across studies.4 Ariel et al. (2016c)
also found a troubling link between BWCs and
increased rates of assaults on officers.5 Ariel et al.
(2016b) tied patterns in use of force to officer de
cisions on BWC activation. That is, when officers
followed policy—they activated the BWC at the
start of citizen encounters and advised citizens of
the BWC—use of force declined by 37%. When
officers did not follow policy, use of force actually
increased by 71%.
The mixed findings on BWCs and violence in
police–citizen encounters suggest the dynamics at
play may be considerably more complex than ori
ginally described by advocates of the technology.6
Research has explored a number of other potential benefits and limitations associated with BWCs. Due to space constraints,
the authors focus on the outcomes most relevant for the cu
ent study: use of force, complaints, and officer injuries. See
White XXXXXXXXXXand the National Body-Worn Camera Toolkit (Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2016a) for additional discussion of
other benefits and challenges associated with BWCs.
2 For additional studies reporting reductions in complaints and use of force see: Goodall (2007); Ellis et al. (2015).
3 Six of the ten boroughs did experience fewer complaints but only two reached statistical significance, and the effect across all
oroughs was also not significant (Grossmith et al., 2015).
4 Researchers randomized shifts rather than officers (Ariel et al., 2016c).
5 To our knowledge, Ariel et al. (2016c) is the only published study to examine this important outcome.
6 We use ‘violence’ as a general term that captures aggression and combativeness in police–citizen encounters, and we treat
use of force, complaints against officers, and officer injuries as indicators of violence.
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3 Potential for Body-Worn Cameras Article Policing
The inconsistent results are especially troubling
given the rapid diffusion of BWCs in law enforce
ment and the potentially severe, longstanding con
sequences of violence in police–citizen encounters
(Fyfe, 1988; President’s Task Force on 21st Century
Policing, 2015; White and Klinger, 2012).
Moreover, the potential link between BWCs and
increased assaults on officers (Ariel et al., 2016c)
wa
ants immediate attention from researchers.
The cu
ent study explores these questions using
data from a randomized controlled trial in
Spokane, Washington.
Methods and data
The cu
ent study is part of a larger project exam
ining the impact and consequences of BWCs. In
early 2015, the Spokane Police Department (SPD)
leadership devised a plan for a staggered rollout of
BWCs to all patrol officers in two phases (n = 149).7
The leadership worked with the authors to randomize
the process by which