Donald Black's "pure sociology," first set out in his Behavior of Law in 1976, is probably cited more frequently than any other theoretical perspective by researchers studying the use of force by the police. However, his hypotheses have never been systematically tested in relation to this phenomenon. This article reports a partial test of Black's theory focusing on the role of stratification in explaining police behavior. Officers in one Mexican, one U.S., and three Venezuelan police departments completed a survey in which vignettes were used to elicit dispositions to employ force in encounters with highor low-status citizens who were described in varying confrontational stances. The results did not provide support for Black's hypotheses concerning stratification and the behavior of law; rather, the key predictor of officers' disposition to use force was the citizen's behavior in the encounter. This latter variable merits theoretical attention.

Cross-national studies of the police have indicated that cultural and attitudinal variables are important determinants of citizens' decision to call the police. In contrast, crime victimization surveys conducted within countries have indicated that crime seriousness is the only important variable. In the present study, data from household surveys conducted in the United States and Venezuela are used to test the relative importance of attitudes toward the police and seriousness of crime as determinants of calling the police. Results indicate that seriousness is a better predictor than attitudes toward the police, although it by no means accounts for all cross-national differences in reporting patterns. Further study of attitudes toward the police would be fruitful.

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As a first step in identifying potential opportunities for improved control, this study describes aspects of firearms possession and use among a sample of juvenile offenders and examines system responses to incidents involving juveniles and firearms in two New Mexico counties. The main sources of data are a self-report questionnaire administered to 380 juvenile offenders in confinement, and information on 135 incidents involving firearms that led to the arrest of one or more juveniles. Our results show that firearms are readily accessible to juvenile offenders and are carried most often for self-defense or aggression rather than as status symbols. Two thirds of firearms incidents became known to police after calls were made by citizens. These calls often concerned violent or property crimes. One third of the incidents were detected by the police following searches in public places. Compared to cases initiated by citizens, those initiated by police intervention were more likely to lead to charges being filed and to subsequent adjudication, mainly on weapons charges. We conclude by recommending that the police increase their monitoring of situations in which juveniles are likely to be carrying firearms illegally.

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