Body‐Worn Cameras and Policing: A List Experiment of Citizen Overt and True Support

Abstract

Police body-worn cameras (BWCs) have gained popularity in recent years. However, many minimize the complexity of this transparency initiative and elevate the potential benefits. While BWCs can promote police accountability, they may also reduce citizen trust in police organizations. For BWCs to achieve win-win solutions, police organizations should determine the level of citizen support for specific BWC practices. However, measuring citizen support presents several challenges. Social desirability may impact polling results, as participants underreport responses they perceive to be outside the norm. The authors employ a list experiment design to measure true citizen support for BWC practices. They find statistically significant levels of social desirability for police discretion in the activation of BWCs and for restriction of footage accessibility regarding suspects with mental illness. Decision makers should not rely on public opinion polls as a gauge of true citizen support for BWC use. Evidence for Practice• Citizens remain skeptical about giving police officers discretion in turning on police body-worn cameras. • Public polling may overestimate the level of support citizens have for police body-worn cameras. • Police body-worn camera initiatives are more complex than frequently portrayed.

Can Technology Work for Policing? Citizen Perceptions of Police-Body Worn Cameras

“…A more recent innovation that can be couched in the e-government literature is the integration and use of BWC in police departments. A recent publication by Bromberg et al (2018) sought to understand citizen support of BWC technology as an accountability and transparency measure. In doing so, they found that social desirability biases impact citizen perceptions regarding BWC when conducting polls.…”

“…Only one study incorporated mixed methods to understand stakeholder perceptions (see White et al, 2018). While citizen surveys are an effective avenue to gauge perceptions, there are social desirability biases that may manifest in such polls found by Bromberg et al (2018). Thus, qualitative research methods that are able to delve deeper into the perceptions of citizens provide a fruitful area of research.…”

Who Should We Count as Citizens? Categorizing People in Public Administration Research

“…Another study reached conclusions about “citizen governance” based on a survey of adult residents of England and Wales (John 2009). A third gauged “citizen support” for police body‐worn cameras based on data from CivicPanel, which represents “adult residents of New York City and the nation,” as well as a poll that samples “all adult residents” of New Hampshire (Bromberg, Charbonneau, and Smith 2018, 884, 887; UNH Survey Center 2020; Van Ryzin 2008, 240).…”

Trinity Is Still My Name: Renewed Appreciation for Triangulation and Methodological Diversity in Public Administration

“…Andersen and Moynihan () implement an experimental design to examine how socially distinctive newcomers fare within organizations. Bromberg, Charbonneau, and Smith () rely on a list experiment to examine citizen support for body cameras in policing. Menger and Stein () use an experimental design to examine the effect of public enlistment in election administration.…”