Research

Police Coercion, Procedural Justice, and Civilian Police Oversight Perception: A Systematic-Social Observation of Field Stop Body-Worn Camera (BWC) Footage in Philadelphia

This research explores civilian police oversight workers’ perceptions of police-suspect encounters.
A triangulation, mixed method design is employed. A representative sample of body-worn camera (BWC) footage of officer-suspect interactions is reduced to code via systematic social observation. Regression models are estimated to evaluate the effects of situational and officer-subject factors on oversight personnel perceptions of police action. Quantitative results are validated and interpreted in view of qualitative results.
This study focuses on perceptions of authoritative police action (coercion) in the presence and absence of procedurally just policing practices
Despite the proliferation of civilian oversight bodies in municipal policing, little research exists probing their perceptions of police action. While this study adds to the nascent body of literature, the results are not generalizable based on the small sample of oversight personnel, and logistical restrictions did not allow for a non-oversight control group.

Keywords: civilian police oversight, procedural justice, coercion, authority, Terry stops, suspect-encounters, field stops