From School Halls to Shopping Malls: Multilevel Predictors of Police Contact In and Out of School

Abstract

Objectives: Individual- and school-level factors associated with youth being stopped, searched, or arrested in school are identified. Correlates of community-based contact are also examined. Methods: Longitudinal student surveys and corresponding school-level data come from 21 middle and high schools in 6 districts in St. Louis County, Missouri. Multilevel multinomial logistic regression was used to assess factors related to a three-category dependent variable, distinguishing youth with: (1) no police contact, (2) in-school contact, and (3) out-of-school contact. Independent variables capture student-level demographics, behavior, experiences, and perceptions and school-level characteristics and practices. Results: Factors associated with in-school contact include substance use, peer associations, prior contact, and prior school sanctions. Odds of school-based contact also increase when youth are less aware of school rules and perceive greater disorder. Among school-level characteristics, only officers responding to school problems is significantly associated with in-school contact. Conclusions: There is some consistency in individual-level factors associated with police contact across locations, particularly related to prior sanctions, but findings highlight potential mechanisms that vary across contexts. This study also provides evidence that some schoolwide responses may contribute to youth's likelihood of having police contact in school, but solutions should consider the fluidity of contact in schools and communities.

Updating, subtyping, and perceptions of the police: Implications of police contact for youths’ perceptions of procedural justice

“…Moreover, youth are exposed to the broader collective narrative surrounding policing in the United States, which is dominated by discussions of race (Bell, 2017). Race also shapes individuals’ interactions with agents of social control, including the likelihood they encounter the police—both in school and out of school—and the nature of these encounters (Wiley et al., 2022). On average, Black individuals are stopped or arrested at a younger age and at a higher rate compared with their White counterparts and are more likely to appraise those encounters as negative (Brame et al., 2014; Dennison & Finkeldey, 2021; Epp et al., 2014).…”