U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Putting Our Best Foot Forward

NCJ Number
129971
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 58 Issue: 5 Dated: (May 1991) Pages: 31-34
Author(s)
W R Nichols
Date Published
1991
Length
4 pages
Annotation
A sample of 77 recent burglary victims in the Victoria, Texas area was surveyed to assess how they would rate the performance of the local police department and their resulting attitudes toward crime and safety.
Abstract
According to the results, an officer's professional demeanor, as manifested by officer courtesy, respect, and interest in the case, strongly influences respondents' attitudes toward the police department as a whole. There is no significant relationship between clearance of a burglary case and the victim's attitude toward the police department. The results suggest that neither ethnic nor socioeconomic background influences victims' attitudes. While many respondents feel somewhat safe in their neighborhoods following their victimizations, several commented that additional police patrols would increase their sense of security. 3 references