What Can Time Tell Us Regarding Perceptions of Police? Incorporating Latency Information into Experimental Evaluations of Dichotomous Outcomes

• In Event: New Directions in Policing Research

Abstract

Measuring perceptions of the police has been a topic of much discussion. The present research contributes to this discussion by exploring the utility of latency information when assessing perceptual outcomes. Using data from my experiment, the Police Officer Perception Project (POPP; Simpson, 2017), I first measure the effects of police aesthetics (e.g., uniform accoutrements, vehicle designs, etc.) on five dichotomous outcomes: (1) aggressive versus not aggressive, (2) approachable versus not approachable, (3) friendly versus not friendly, (4) respectful versus not respectful, and (5) accountable versus not accountable. Using associated latency information, I then assess the speed (in milliseconds) by which participants categorize each aesthetic variable on each outcome. Finally, I combine both sets of results to assess overall impacts on perceptions of the police. My findings reveal that latency information may complement analyses of dichotomous outcomes by providing a fruitful measure of magnitude. I discuss the importance of these findings with respect to measurement, research design, and perceptions of the police more broadly.

Author

• Rylan Simpson, University of California, Irvine