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Decades of research consistently support the link between poor self-control or deviant friendships with undesirable behavior. Rather than treating these theories as rival explanations, this study presents an assessment that explores a potential interconnection between self-control and social learning (differential association) in the prediction of deviant outcomes. Specifically, this investigation analyzes the mediating and moderating impact of deviant peer association upon the relationship between self-control and self-reported fraudulent behavior (academic dishonesty). Data gathered from an anonymous survey of undergraduate students (n = 490) generated findings that suggest deviant friendships mediate and moderate the association between self-control and fraudulent behavior. The implications of these findings are discussed.

This paper explores police perceptions on the causes of crime and the declining legitimacy of the police. Notwithstanding the growing body of research on public perceptions towards police, there is little qualitative research on the police perceptions on their attributions for crime, their declining legitimacy, and the breakdown of justice. It is crucial to increase knowledge on police perceptions towards the public, particularly in the aftermath of violent police-citizen encounters. Given the likelihood that such perceptions will influence the behavior of police officers when interacting with the public, exploring police perspectives regarding crime, their declining legitimacy, and the breakdown of justice is a worthy endeavor. This study, therefore, presents qualitative analysis of data gathered from interviews of 20 local police officers and deputies and participant observations conducted in a Southern American State. The study found that officers blamed community members and dysfunctional social institutions for sustaining environments that foster criminality, a lack of respect for authority, as well as declining police legitimacy. Officers were also frustrated by the role of news and social media as instigators of the constant anger and criticism towards police that make it difficult for them to do their jobs effectively. The implications for police practice and community relations are discussed.

Community-oriented policing (COP) is arguably the most popular and most misunderstood policing philosophy. Definitional ambiguity contributes to this problem, hampering theoretical development, creative new strategies of implementation, and evidence-based policy. DiMaggio and Powell’s seminal piece on institutional isomorphism provides a framework for understanding the organizational vagueness of COP, including the processes of homogenization of priorities and structures across police organizations. We propose several new dimensions of COP, developed using police mission statements from a nationally representative sample of law enforcement agencies ( N = 2,826). These emergent dimensions (Shallow Community-Oriented Policing, Responsivity, Legitimacy, Constitutionality, and Inclusivity) provide new avenues of theoretical consideration of the COP construct. Exploring these novel elements may strengthen existing community-oriented strategies and encourage creative policy suggestions.

Social media, in the past decade, has been used to hold police accountable for their actions. There has been, however, a paucity of empirical research into how law enforcement uses social media. To explore this issue, this paper uses qualitative data emerging from ethnographic research conducted in a Southern American state. Participant observations of police officer deployments were paired with semi-structured interviews with officers from three law enforcement agencies. The extent and ways in which these officers used social media is explored. Findings indicate that social media is used to bring positive attention to law enforcement agencies and aid criminal investigations. Although the positive impact of social media was highlighted in these experiences, persistent problems and challenges also featured in the data. Finally, officer insights were drawn upon to make recommendations for future policing policy and research.

Against the complex backdrop of a post-modern era, characterised by a renewed emphasis on public accountability, oppositional social and political movements, it has been argued that traditional age...

In order to understand attitudes toward police in the post-Ferguson era, in this chapter we discuss the rubric of procedural justice and police legitimacy perceptions. We then explore the historical roots of police-community conflict and the ongoing confidence gap in attitudes toward police, and conclude by discussing the impact of Black Lives Matter (BLM) and digital media in general as a tool for collective action and empowerment.