Citizens’ Perception of Police Services in an Oil Boomtown

Abstract

Past research indicates that various factors influence citizens’ perception of police services, including citizen characteristics, prior criminal victimization, personal safety, and fear of crime. However, less is known about the influence that these variables have on citizens’ perceptions in a community experiencing rapid population growth as a result of increased energy production. Thus, the focus of the current research was to examine how such variables impact citizens’ perception of crime control by police officers in a town experiencing rapid changes. This study also examined the role of residential longevity by testing for perceptual differences among long-time and boom residents. Finally, this research considers the influence of neighborhood social cohesion/trust on citizens’ perception of police services. Data for this study was gathered from surveys completed by a random sample of residents living in Williston, North Dakota during the fall of 2015 (N=301). Overall, results suggest a number of factors related to citizens’ characteristics, prior criminal victimization, and personal safety impact residents’ perception of police services. Second, long-time residents were more likely than boom residents to agree that the police were doing a good job delivering services to their community. Lastly, neighborhood trust (but not neighborhood reliability) influenced residents’ perception of police services. The implications of these findings are discussed.