Breaking the Silence: How Anonymity, Reporting Methods, and Authorities Impact Willingness to Report Suspicious Activity

• In Event: Understanding Political Violence and Public Safety: Insights from Protest Crimes, Hate Crimes, Radicalization, and Counterterrorism

Abstract

Members of the public play a key role in the prevention of crimes, mass violence, and terrorism by reporting suspicious behavior to authorities. Yet, there are a number of areas where a breakdown in the reporting process may occur. Even when people recognize a behavior as concerning, they may still be unwilling to report these concerns. Previous research has found that, among other things, severity of concerning behavior, characteristics of the suspect or respondent, and perceptions of law enforcement can influence willingness to report. However, there is a limited amount of research which examines how characteristics of the reporting platform—namely the option for anonymity and the modality—and of the report receiver impact public willingness to report concerning behavior to authorities. The current project seeks to address these gaps by asking the following question: What factors of reporting platform and receiver influence willingness to report suspicious activity? We explore this question through an online survey-experiment with over 1,200 US adult participants in which we present scenarios for reporting suspicious activity varying based on characteristics of completing the report. Findings indicate that willingness to report varies based on ability for anonymity, method of reporting, and authority figure receiving the report.

Authors

• Callie Vitro, University of Nebraska Omaha

• Isaac Moelter, University of Nebraska Omaha / NCITE

• Erin M. Kearns, University of Nebraska Omaha / NCITE