Beyond “See Something, Say Something”: Understanding barriers to public identification of suspicious activity, willingness to report it, and knowledge how to do so

• In Event: Assessing Risk and Threat Across the Violent Extremism Landscape

Abstract

Effective targeted violence and terrorism (TVT) prevention and intervention relies upon members of the public to report suspicious behavior. Yet, there are three critical points during this process where breakdowns can occur: 1) identifying a behavior as concerning; 2) willingness to provide a tip about concerning behavior; and 3) knowing how and where to report the concerning behavior. Most research has focused only on public willingness to report to police. Thus, we know little about willingness to report to non-law enforcement entities or about other points where breakdowns in reporting can occur. Using an approximately representative survey of US adults, we experimentally examine both a) how well members of the public can identify validated pre-incident suspicious activity behaviors and b) stated willingness to report to police versus non-law enforcement entities. We also examine public experience with and knowledge of crime reporting in general and TVT reporting specifically. Overall findings provide a clearly picture of the gaps in public knowledge on TVT prevention, which need to be addressed for more effective interventions going forward.

Authors

• Nathan Dufour, University of Nebraska at Omaha

• Erin M. Kearns, University of Nebraska at Omaha

• Isaac Moelter, University of Nebraska at Omaha