Procedural Justice Theory Model Of Law Enforcement

Introduction

Law enforcement is a system that keeps peace and order within a society and policing within the United States has had a long and difficult history due to fluctuations of support over time (Parker & Hurst, 2021). Throughout history, numerous levels of law enforcement have emerged such as local, state, federal and university police which all serve their own purposes. Specifically, campus police are a specialized group of officers that only possess jurisdiction over a university’s property also known as public safety. Overall, public safety is an extremely under researched population and more research should be done due to the popularity and relevance that safety holds on campuses (Aiello, 2020). College is supposed to be a safe

This theory became the framework in which a majority of modern-day policing derives from. It is broken into two areas that cover the quality of decision making by officers as well as the quality of treatment of individuals (Aiello, 2020). The model was designed for municipal law enforcement to structure their daily duties, into being community oriented, which is known as community policing. Also, this theory affects the way that people perceive police due to the officer's decision making and treatment of the public. The various levels of law enforcement differ in jurisdiction and location; however, they also vary in public perceptions of police. As mentioned previously, the overall level of support generally varies by the age of the person perceiving them. A person’s perception affects their general attitudes through differences in behaviors. The level of service provided by the law enforcement officers tends to be the highest determinant that affects one’s attitudes toward officers (Youstin & Kopp,

An example is when a public safety officer called the local police for assistance on an investigation or arrest. This is when jurisdictions begin to blur in the public eye which causes any feeling toward municipal police to spill over into perception of public safety. Students perceive police officers as ruining their fun and “bullies, with nothing better to do” (Allen, 2017). As mentioned previously, perception varies by age and 18–29-year-olds have the least amount of respect for officers (Parker & Hurst, 2021). There is little known about public safety offices in terms of the perceptions of them amongst college students. This study is meant to identify the presence or lack of connection between student’s perceptions of municipal police officers compared to public safety officers. I expect to find a relation between these two law enforcement