NCJ Number
196302
Journal
International Journal of Police Science and Management Volume: 4 Issue: 2 Dated: Summer 2002 Pages: 87-100
Date Published
2002
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study examined the ways in which the police dealt with burglary victims in Prague.
Abstract
Given the close association between the police in Prague and the political regime during Soviet domination, public perception of the police has improved only gradually. It appears that the public is still cautious about the institution of policing. This research was designed to assess victims’ perceptions of their crime experiences in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, by replicating an earlier study of six cities in England, Germany, Poland, and Hungary. Prague has the highest crime rate in the Czech Republic. The study focused on a sample of 400 victims of burglary that had reported their crimes to the police within a 12-month period. Results showed that victims with different crime experiences or different characteristics tended to differ in their views. Those for whom the burglary had the most impact, or who registered most concern about their future security, were most likely to criticize the way the police responded to their burglary. While victims’ views of the police were correlated with their assessments of the way the police responded to this incident, there was also a clear indication that the profile of those who were critical of the police differed from that of victims who were critical of the way the police dealt with the burglary. Feelings about the Czech police differed according to the context within which the police were being considered. In a number of respects, Czech victims held very different views from victims from other countries. These findings illustrated the dangers of generalizing about the changes taking place in crime and policing in post-communist societies. While these results suggest that victims’ perceptions of the police in Prague are positive, a significant minority of respondents raised criticism of police performance. 4 tables, 8 notes, 36 references