Abstract
A specific theory‐guided, humanity‐focused perspective addresses the “how” and “why” of America's long‐standing racial tension and the patterned problem of wrongful Black deaths. Qualitative data coding and analysis indicate interpersonal and relational misalignments between male youth of color (MYC) and law enforcement officers (LEO). LEO interview findings highlight professional support needs and safety‐relevant tasks and responsibilities; however, MYC interview outcomes emphasize the challenges and assistance needed to successfully complete developmental tasks. The perceptions and reported behaviors of MYCs are highlighted based on data gathered from 44 audio‐only one‐hour youth interviews and 54 h‐and‐one‐half audio‐only Zoom interviews with sworn officers. Youth report that family socialization prepares them for successful encounters with LEOs as MYCs navigate ecologies and pursue developmental objectives. However, LEO judgments about MYC indicate significant expectation misalignments that overlook many youths' vulnerability status attributes, suggesting disconnects in how each group perceives the other. Youth describe parental emphasized respect and obedience socialization directives for use during anticipated interactions with police, which often go unrecognized by LEOs. Thus, familial “reciprocal socialization” instructions provided for youth indicate a source of misalignments in expectations given their apparent invisibility to LEOs; perceptions held by LEOs of MYC do not align with the respect and obedience emphasis provided the latter by families. Youths feel they intentionally follow familial expectations in their encounters, yet law enforcement professionals fail to acknowledge or recognize families' supportive socialization efforts. Inferred is that elements about the identity processes of LEOs and MYCs are consistent with Roberta Rosenberg Simmons's long‐term insights.
Keywords: LEOs' expectations of MYC behavior, male youth of color's perceptions of LEO, MYC and LEO interactional misalignments
The Roberta Grodberg Simmons Prize Lecture recognizes the long‐term impactful scholarship of Roberta Simmons across many decades of broad contributions, particularly her identity‐focused scholarship. Consistent with that scholarly tradition and recognition, this article is attentive to the bidirectional socialization processes and human identity‐relevant sense‐making about respect that are critical attributes for identity processes and human thriving. Whether for determining or providing critiques of best policy design recommendations (e.g., see Spencer & Dowd, 2024) or acknowledging the everyday supportive coping and mastery of foundational and expected developmental tasks (e.g., see Swanson et al., 2005; Youngblood & Spencer, 2002, 2010), practical, specific, and appropriate levels of care are consequential for healthy ego functioning. They contribute to meaning making given coping needs and, thus, have implications for identity formation. Proffered supports expressed as tangibles (e.g., concrete implementable programmatic assistance) or intangibles (e.g., conscious or unconscious beliefs of shared human status) matter.
As well, the topic of support character has long enjoyed significant attention—including the consideration of parent–child interactions—as reported early on in the social sciences by John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth. Providing an evolutionary perspective, their vigorously stated argument was that human newborns were wired to orient toward people (e.g., Ainsworth, 1967; Ainsworth et al., 1971; Bowlby, 1958, 1969). The perspective was also well represented in maternal and child health (e.g., Klaus, 1998; Klaus & Kennell, 1982). The latter's critical and classic insights included early demonstrated and acknowledged benefits due to maternal (parental) infant bonding and reciprocal health‐promoting behaviors and outcomes as observed for both parent and infant. With its unfolding developmental processes emphasis, expanding influences, and relational opportunities moving forward across the years (e.g., contributed to by maturation and unique expressions of unavoidable human vulnerability status), socialization research continues to provide critical insights given human maturation processes. It incorporates socio‐emotional, neurobiological, physical, and cognition‐relevant factors that help interpret both unidirectional and reciprocal socialization impacts. The latter observation of the bidirectional or reciprocal relationships is central in light of the sheer number, character, and life course relevant development‐linked tasks required for thriving, including throughout adolescence. Essential safety and connectedness issues associated with youth's greater autonomy from parents (freedom/independence) are critical and, as well, connectedness to adults more generally and particularly family members present in their lives (see Bush & Simmons, 1990; Havighurst, 1953). Acknowledged as important or not, developmental and historical considerations suggest that contemporary cultural traditions such as policing and male youth of color interactions matter. Their significance, incentivizing contributions to the topic, and persistent linkages to multi‐million‐dollar wrongful death judgments, we maintain, parallel the under‐interrogated history of America's slave‐catching traditions that have resulted in a particular cultural way of viewing, preparing for, and implementing the role of policing.
INTRODUCTION AND FRAMING
The broad theorizing afforded by the phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST: Spencer, 1995, 2006) provides an identity‐focused‐cultural‐ecological perspective and highlights consequential influences due to interactions with significant others, but the current analysis goes further. Perceptions are explored about interactions between male youth of color (MYC) and law enforcement officers (LEOs), given that the “blue wall” culture of the latter—as a stable context—is seldom interrogated from theoretical perspectives emphasizing the role of human vulnerability, resilience, and shared thriving requirements across the life course. Accordingly, we highlight a particular conceptual strategy and enhancement provided by emphasizing—within PVEST as a scaffolding device—the cultural repertoire perspective provided by the insights of Gutierrez & Rogoff (2003) and Rogoff (2003) and as well the cultural behavioral approach afforded by Lee (2006; see also Lee et al., 2003). The latter—more often than not—is applied to classrooms. Given the broad use of School Resource Officers (SROs), Lee's school‐based contributions are important in reinforcing context‐emphasizing human development insights. Culturally grounded and sensitive insights are critical for appreciating behaviors wherein development and human interactions transpire, inferences are exchanged as individuals spend time together, and—unavoidably—where social and cognition‐specific learning occurs, contributing to identities evolving both in and outside schools. The culturally relevant perspectives aid the unraveling and deep understanding of a frequently static appearing perspective concerning relational stress and context‐linked reactive coping needs; the latter is especially cogent when associated with the nation's policing traditions—particularly as regards people of color—given the relational history between the two lived roles. Referenced protagonists include historically enslaved persons, on the one hand, and the long‐term “slave‐catching role” foundational to the policing profession and the implicit behavioral control theme. As suggested, the historical character of the relationship represents a conceptual dilemma and unmistakable source of human stress. It is particularly relevant when considering interactions between policing professionals and their intended and unintended interactions with people of color in general. However, added fragility is introduced when interrogating youth‐stage vulnerability‐relevant exchanges with LEOs as MYC pursue—like privileged youth—normative expected tasks critical to identity processes albeit frequently under atypical conditions of risk.
Accordingly—given the reported virtual 800,000 American population of 86% male, trained, and sworn police officers (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023)—here we interrogate the context‐broad interactions between LEOs and MYC. The theoretical lens employed does not assume behaviorally static interactions. Specifically, human stress is not unexpected from a PVEST perspective. The reality of “interpersonal misalignments” is acknowledged for LEO and MYC interactions. The reactive coping linked stress for each is linked with LEO status, the role's hierarchically determined social positionality, including its “control theme,” and the unacknowledged historical invisibility bias (i.e., conflicting assumptions concerning Blacks' humanity status are frequently ignored) (Spencer & Dowd, 2024). The triple intersectionality experiences of MYC are featured (i.e., as a youth, male, and Black individual) given that each remains burdened by normal ego‐relevant adolescent identity demands. Important to note—and representing the comparison “other”—White teens are not equally burdened; in fact, whiteness functions as a protective factor. For MYCs and the combination of intersectionality contributors noted requires an interrogation of the role of basic human respect and appreciation for identity process success.
We emphasize male, youth of color with a special focus on Blacks. However, the fact of identifiability suggests that the themes may be relevant as well for other identifiable groups also burdened by a history of patterned discrimination (e.g., Indigenous youth and particular immigrant communities). However, reciprocal socialization is a major platform and theme; thus, acknowledged is that the research on particular topics is inconsistently represented in scientific literature; thus, assumptions are not made regarding the total appropriateness of particular viewpoints potentially inferred for other communities. Nonetheless, referring to MYC generically, we make assumptions of overlap given shared parental values concerning safety concerns and the fact of identifiability of difference. Thus, we use PVEST as a framing device for exploring the challenges and opportunities for understanding MYC's reciprocal socialization experiences as it applies to their identity‐relevant beliefs regarding respect, parental intended protective socialization strategies provided, and LEO assumptions and experiences. Finally, we refrain from using the more inclusive assuming consideration of gender by use of the label “boys” vs. “males;” the resistance and, thus, hesitance is due to the pejorative American slave history tradition that expressly referred to Black men as “boys.” The negative interpretation and connotations of such referrals too frequently remain significant into the 21st century.
Theoretical and conceptual emphases
As indicated in Figure 1, the systems theory, PVEST (Spencer, 1995, 2006, 2008; phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory), provides a broad human vulnerability/resilience perspective for developmental science specifically and social science more broadly.
FIGURE 1.
Processes emphasizing: phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST).
The framing integrates social, historical, and cultural context themes with maturational and developmental processes individuals undergo throughout life (Spencer, 1995, 2006, 2008). For the current project, situating youth identity formation within a socio‐cognitive‐neurobiological‐cultural framing and context provides attentiveness to the role of inference making—phenomenological interpretations and responses—to the “how” and “why” of particular experiences and outcomes. It was formulated as a needed critique of traditional developmental theories that ignored or represented deficit perspectives for people of color and failed to acknowledge context features. It benefits communities of problematized individuals, such as people of color (POC); however, the systems theory is applicable to all humans. The sources of vulnerability (i.e., protective factors and risk contributors) vary for any group's particular “American origin story,” subsequent experiences, and long‐term positionality. This framing represents individuals' dynamic processes given vulnerability status and combines an emphasis on individual perceptions with Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory (EST).
Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory (EST) provides an organizational framework to engage the contextual factors that inform human development over the life course and articulates a series of nested systems in which individuals are embedded and constituted by the proximal and distal components that interact with individuals' developmental milestones and trajectories. The microsystem is most immediately located around the individual, primarily occupied by familial and home contexts. Adjacent to the microsystem is the mesosystem, which establishes the connection to the broader exosystem where more remote, disparate networks, such as workplaces and services, reside. The outer bands are where Bronfenbrenner situates culture and values (macrosystem) and the broader events occurring over time, enveloping all of these nested systems (chronosystem). This includes the environmental and sociohistorical events and transitions that can envelop and occur throughout one's life.
Illustrated in Figure 1, PVEST is conceptualized as five basic components linked by bidirectional, recursive processes, forming a dynamic, cyclic model. It depicts the first component of the system, net vulnerability level, and consists of the contexts and characteristics (e.g., stress) that can pose challenges and, thus, require coping during an individual's development at any life stage. The coping is regularized as an identity and given varying conditions is associated with particular outcomes. For the current project, racial assumptions as held by police officers are interrogated with the respect socialization strategies experienced by MYC.
PVEST links context and experience with individual meaning making and identity formation, all from a normal human development perspective; the qualification of “normal human” is critical given the history of the social sciences to a priori problematize particularly non‐White and low‐resource individuals' situations to deviant or nonhuman status. The habit has implications for the culturally inclusive representations of science production (Spencer, 2023, 2024a, 2024b; Spencer et al., 2024). While EST theory describes hierarchical levels of context, PVEST directly illustrates life course human development as influenced by these multiple levels of context. This approach is quite different from those that anticipate homogenous group outcomes that, too frequently, are assumed to represent either deficits for some or inferred uninterrogated and “normalized” privileges for others. PVEST provides a systems framework for understanding variability, which applies to all humans. Particularly for MYCs, it affords particular advantages. They include a strategy to understand—given historically relevant but generally under‐examined reciprocal socialization‐relevant contexts, and the fact of the previously noted intersectionality contributions—adolescent reactive coping behaviors (e.g., machismo or hypermasculinity behaviors: see Cunningham, 1999; Cunningham et al., 2013). As a way of unpacking perception differences—inferred as cultural repertoires of practice and as described by Gutiérrez and Rogoff (2003)—we first describe youth's self‐reported police‐respecting, family provided socialization experiences. For the study's 45 adolescents, self‐described “respect for police” home socialized traditions are reported, as well as humanity‐relevant “respectful treatment expectations from police” themes. The adolescent interview findings are interrogated along with the perspectives and reported cultural repertoires of 54 racially diverse LEOs. The culture‐emphasizing interview strategy provides insight into the frequent reports of LEO and MYC “misaligned or crossed‐purposed” interactions.
Cultural repertoire
A significant contribution of this emphasis is its use in various disciplines including sociology, anthropology, and cultural studies. It provides scholars with an explanatory frame to explore how individuals use cultural knowledge, practices, and tools to express their identities. These studies often focus on understanding the diversity of cultural repertoires across different societies with researchers and scholars examining how these cultural practices are transmitted across generations and how they contribute to the continuity and change within a culture. Investigations into cultural learning styles emerged in the United States during the 1960s, as part of a larger trend of research initiatives that aimed to ameliorate the disparate conditions in schools (Gutiérrez & Rogoff, 2003). Cultural learning styles refer to how individuals from different cultural backgrounds prefer to acquire and process information. Cultural influences including beliefs, values, communication styles, and social norms shape these preferences. A significant amount of this information is communicated through socialization. The concept suggests that people may have distinct approaches to learning based on their cultural contexts, and understanding these variations can be essential in educational settings and beyond. The “beyond,” in the current case, represents communities and settings—including many urban schools—where policing also takes place.
Following a background review of supportive literature (e.g., the history of policing, empirical findings for same [e.g., Jennifer Eberhardt's experimental psychology contributions] and intersectionality)—given their salience to our theoretical framing and cultural acknowledgment—we acknowledge and synopsize the literatures on reciprocal socialization while incorporating briefly the contributions of beliefs concerning respect and appreciation. The literature overview is followed by a Methods Section, which includes, first as context, a report of MYCs' reciprocal socialization experiences as preparation for anticipated interactions with police. The synopsized quotes illustrate respect‐providing and safety‐conscious parental/adult socialization strategies as reported by MYC. The methods section describes our strategy for collecting qualitative data on over 50 sworn police officers. Findings and discussion illustrate the reciprocal views of policing professionals about youth behavior. They suggest both sources of alignment and misalignment as youth navigate myriad places and spaces in their autonomous pursuit of identity formation and more general thriving efforts to accomplish developmental tasks.
BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW
Highlighted is that the under‐interrogated history of America's slave‐catching traditions has resulted in a particular cultural way of viewing, preparing for, and exercising the role of policing. As an officially communicated role of conduct, it claims the behavioral practices of safety and support afforded to all citizens. However, the media reporting of wrongful deaths too frequently involving policing professionals and resulting in untoward outcomes with communities of color suggests a particular cultural repertoire in the context of joint interactions. The concept of reciprocal socialization allows for an appreciation of the joint behavioral impact of interactions on everyone. Published reports acknowledge the humanity and linked vulnerability of policing professionals, especially given their legal status to carry firearms. As suggested by the framing theory, PVEST, their vulnerability status means the presence of risk factors and protective factors for which their balance or imbalance has implications for stress experience and the character of LEOs reactive coping (i.e., adaptive or maladaptive). At the same time, not all “adolescent silliness,” “verbosity,” and “identity‐protecting machismo” suggest threats to firearm‐carrying adults. In other words, if “White adolescent status” serves as a protective factor against “unintended injury and death,” then understanding particular cultural repertoires requires interrogation (i.e., the inferred threat of melanin‐pigmented skin for hostile LEO–MYC interactions). The misalignment of interactions requires consideration of the training of adult and armed policing professionals when interacting—mainly—with MYC; however, other historically stereotyped youth of color may experience parallel challenges. Understanding youths' perceptions of LEOs might aid in explaining the too frequent “behavioral misalignments” when interacting with LEOs.
Meeting adolescent developmental task requirements provides purpose as youth prepare for adulthood and life‐long thriving. As a function of the nation's history, attributes required for successful passage into adulthood for people of color are not distinct from other basic demographics. The independence and connectedness of socialization themes at adolescence and the needed supportive ecologies for navigating into emergent adulthood have contemporary relevance, especially for Black adolescents. As previously noted, an appreciation of intersectionality suggests its particular relevance for male youth of color—referenced as MYC—especially given their disproportional representation in wrongful deaths and untoward experiences as a consequence of America's policing tradition. Accordingly, for example, given encounters with police and taking advantage of identity‐focused cultural‐ecological theoretical framing, under‐acknowledged white privilege across diverse navigated settings provides protective factors for Whites. Accordingly, successful adolescent transition for MYCs requires different socialization experiences and specific socialization‐relevant supports for offsetting race‐based challenges. Over time and referenced as social traditions, referred to are the persistent historically associated demeaning racial challenges and myriad micro‐aggressions that function as under‐interrogated repertoires of practice; the latter function like micro‐aggressions as previously referenced (see Gutierrez & Rogoff, 2003; Rogoff, 2003). Once more, there may be fewer persistent challenges for youth privileged by whiteness; thus, individual‐context “seamlessness” and youth‐supporting experiences exist as spaces are navigated while meeting developmental tasks and normative identity challenges. Lacking such privileges while engaging in identity formation means other supports are needed. This paper explores the role of respect as an intended socialized protective factor particularly for boys of color as they interact with law enforcement officers (LEOs). Adolescent reports of their experiences with LEOs around the theme of respect are described. In parallel, qualitative data findings for 54 LEOs also acknowledge their experiences and interactions with boys of color.
Humanity status attributes and consequences of policing
A significant shortcoming of scholarship impactful for policy, practice, teaching, and learning has been a failure to consider the complexities of the layered and embracing shared ecologies critical for everyone's human development and learning (e.g., see Lerner, 1992). For Spencer and Dowd (Radical Brown: What America owes its children Spencer & Dowd, 2024), mainly focusing on school experiences, their analysis in recognition of the 70th anniversary of the Brown v Board Decision 1954 implies a far from adequate individual‐context fit, particularly when youth and noncustodial parenting adults share contexts. They suggest that a humanity framing for youth of color seldom represents an a priori assumption of shared humanity status. The following quote makes the case.
We live in a society that is uniquely afraid of Black children…Americans become anxious—if not outright terrified—at the sight of a Black child ringing the doorbell, in a car with white women or walking too close in a convenience store. Americans think of Black children as predatory, sexually deviant, and immoral … There is something particularly efficient about treating Black children like criminals in adolescence. Black youth are dehumanized, exploited, and even killed to establish the boundaries of Whiteness before they reach adulthood and assert their rights and independence. (Henning, 2021, p. xv)
Spencer and Dowd conclude their interrogation by noting that the major shortcoming of the remedy ordered by the Supreme Court and its implementation in Brown v. Board 1954 was its failure to consider Black people's humanity: The implemented remedy did not fit the depth of the malaise. Too frequently, analyses of LEO/MYC misalignments during interactions fail to recognize the depth of the historical contributions of policing for contemporary experiences, including the ongoing pattern of wrongful deaths particularly experienced by Blacks.
Intersectionality
Kimberle Crenshaw originally defined “intersectionality” as the experience of subordination along multiple and simultaneous categorical axes in such a way that is “greater than the sum of [for example] racism and sexism [alone]” (Crenshaw, 1989, 140). Since then, the term has become one of the most recognized and popular terms in feminist scholarship and has opened researchers eyes to before‐unseen experiences of people at the intersections of multiple systems of oppression under the law (Crenshaw, 1991), in the labor market (Browne & Misra, 2003; Flippen, 2014), for public health (Bauer, 2014), for activism (Lépinard, 2014; Luna, 2016), in service work (Luna, 2016), for self‐perceptions (Penner & Saperstein, 2013), for cultural participation (Schippers, 2000), for psychological health (Szymanski & Stewart, 2010), for subject formation (Valentine, 2007), in politics (Verloo, 2006), for ideology formation (Vespa, 2009), etc. Along with opening several doors, however, the term has also sparked decades of debate among scholars because of its seemingly amorphous universal applicability, particularly regarding the concept's theoretical vagueness and applicability for methodological practice.
Most involved in debates on intersectionality's usefulness as a concept tend to agree that it lacks theoretical development (Hancock, 2007; McDowell, 2008; Nash, 2008). Its framing here—linked to PVEST and assisted by cultural repertoire perspective—offsets and corrects the shortcoming. According to Choo and Ferree (2010), this original vagueness of intersectionality has caused sociologists to produce three theoretical approaches to intersectionality‐focused work: group‐centered, process‐centered, and system‐centered. Group or inclusion‐centered studies privilege the voices and stories of subjects at the intersection of multiple oppressions, thus “doing” intersectionality theory via the content of the empirical data (2010, 133). Process‐centered intersectional studies, on the other hand, refer to those works that emphasize not only the subjects or effects of “intersectionality” but also the interactions between institutions that actively create these subjects. According to Choo and Ferre, “The process model of intersectionality places primary attention on context and comparison at the intersections as revealing structural processes organizing power” (p. 134). Finally, the system‐centered approach adds another layer of complexity by de‐emphasizing any particular effects and focusing on interactions and sites of interaction. This perspective rejects prioritizing any axis (race, gender, class, etc.) or sorting axes hierarchically under the presupposition that one organizes power more than another.
Another basic agreement is that theories of intersectionality should not consider models of multiple oppressions to be additive (Bauer, 2014; Bowleg, 2008; Crenshaw, 1989; Hancock, 2007; Yuval‐Davis, 2006). That is, being at the intersection of gender and race marginalization does not cause a Black woman to be doubly oppressed, per se, but instead, the two axes interact to produce a wholly different experience than those of either a Black man or a White woman. Purdie‐Vaughs and Eibach (Purdie‐Vaughns & Eibach, 2008) offer a solution to this additive model through the concept of “intersectional invisibility,” which considers the experiences of those at the intersections of multiple axes of oppression as not only overt discrimination but also via being ignored by both group members and by others. Thus, a queer Black man should not be considered doubly oppressed as his experience does not consist of the simple joining of queer and Black oppression but takes on a character of invisibility as he does not fit a prototypical model of either the Black or queer identities.
Acker offers a different solution to the additive model problem of intersectionality by considering not axes of oppression but “inequality regimes” (2006). According to Acker, inequality regimes are dynamic and “interrelated practices, processes, actions, and meanings that result in and maintain class, gender, and racial inequalities within particular organizations” (2006, p. 443). Thus, this solution also avoids the problems of additive models of intersectionality because the ever‐changing processes of inequality regimes cannot be pinned down and stacked like axes. One could imagine a theoretical treatment of intersectionality that considers both inequality regimes and intersectional invisibility, such that both the stability of marginalized categories and the types of marginalization occurring are moving parts of the intersectional model. However, this model creates difficulties for accurate measurement and general intersectionality methodology.
Theoretical and methodological specificity remain at the heart of continuing academic debates about intersectionality and its future for social scientific research. According to Cho, Crenshaw, and McCall, moving these debates forward is a matter of bringing them together with practical applications and political interventions:
If we recognize that conscious efforts to develop methodological literacy across disciplines and contexts can be productive, it would seem that the future development of intersectionality as a field would be advanced by maximizing the interface between the centrifugal and the centripetal processes. (Cho et al., 2013, p. 794)
Consistent with the current effort, the fact of adolescent status provides an additional unique challenge given the myriad sources of change that are coped with simultaneously by young people, particularly given that their meanings made of situations are more often than not dependent on other youths also pursuing developmental tasks and, themselves, vary in regard to vulnerability. Finally, although less often a focus, privilege matters and is generally viewed as uncomfortable to acknowledge; however, it represents a salient aspect of American history and traditions in myriad ways.
Policing history
The origins of policing in the United States are rooted in colonial law enforcement practices and larger urbanization patterns worldwide. These origins have influenced the development of modern policing, particularly in terms of enforcing social order and protecting property. As with other institutions of the time, the professionalization of police forces in the late 19th and early 20th centuries marked a shift toward more formalized and bureaucratic institutions (Gaines et al., 1999; Potter, 2013a).
Potter (2013a) describes how early colonies adopted two significant forms of policing. One was known as the “Watch” or “Watch Systems” (Potter, 2013a). These “Watch Systems” were composed of community volunteers whose central activity was to warn of impending danger. Major cities in the United States, including Boston, Philadelphia, and New York, created night watches throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. These organizations were not particularly effective at controlling or reducing crime, and over time, this system was accompanied by a new system of constables. These were law enforcement officers, usually paid by the fee system for warrants they served, and who, in some cases, oversaw the activities of the night watches (Potter, 2013a). Formal centralized municipal police departments emerged in the United States in the 1830s. In 1838, the city of Boston established the first American police force, and by the 1880s, all major U.S. cities had municipal police forces in place. These organizations were publicly supported, accountable to a central governmental body, and, as noted, were increasingly bureaucratic in form. Police officers were full‐time and continuous employees, and the departments employed permanent and fixed rules and procedures (Gaines et al., 1999; Harring, 1983; Lynch, 1984; Potter, 2013a, 2013b).
Histories of American law enforcement development have often focused on the urban North, overlooking significant events in the colonial and antebellum South, where law enforcement systems emerged before or alongside those in the North (Reichel, 1992). The existence of early Southern rural precursors to formal police organizations challenges the idea that urbanization alone explains the rise of modern policing. Reichel (1992) argues that police structures evolved from citizens' desires to protect themselves and their property. While in some areas, the need for protection may have been tied to urbanization, in others, it arose independently. A critical acknowledgment, Platt (1982) highlights the role of early colonial and Southern slave patrols as precursors to modern police forces, illustrating that policing in the United States has roots in efforts to control specific populations and maintain social order. In addition to chasing down, apprehending, and returning runaway slaves to their owners, slave patrols also served to deter slave revolts. Following the Civil War, these organizations evolved into modern Southern police departments that would subsequently enforce the “Jim Crow” segregation laws. Significantly, the current thesis highlights that the development of police organizations was influenced by more than just urbanization but was shaped by broader societal needs, including the protection of property and, as well, the enforcement of social hierarchies (Potter, 2013a, 2013b; Spitzer & Scull, 1977).
Potter (2013b) argues that more than crime, modern police forces in the United States emerged as a response to “disorder.” As urbanization processes continued, the older informal institutions were no longer adequate for these tasks. Spitzer (1979) examines how broader economic and social structures shape policing in capitalist societies and that the state increasingly rationalizes crime control to protect the interests of the economic elites. This undergirded the growth of the legal and penal systems that focus on managing populations deemed as threats to social order. Crime control policies became less about reducing crime and more about preserving the economic status quo by managing social unrest and reinforcing social hierarchies (Potter, 2013b; Spitzer, 1979; Spitzer & Scull, 1977). The growth and development of modern bureaucratic police institutions coincided with elite economic interests that maintained a greater interest in social order and control than controlling or reducing crime (Potter, 2013b). Private/for‐profit policing was too disorganized and too linked to specific crimes, and the emerging commercial elites desired a stable and orderly workforce (Spitzer & Scull, 1977). They also argue that these mercantile interests wanted to transfer the cost of protecting their own business by having the state assume those costs of policing and disorder control (Potter, 2013b; Spitzer, 1979; Spitzer & Scull, 1977).
The history of police‐community relations has been a central concern in policing studies, particularly in relation to trust and legitimacy (Tyler, 2004). Research indicates that police practices, such as stop‐and‐frisk, disproportionately target racial and ethnic minority communities, leading to strained relations. In fact, “procedural justice” has emerged as a critical framework, emphasizing the importance of fairness, transparency, and respect in police interactions to enhance public trust. Tyler (2004) argues that public support and cooperation are essential for police to maintain order effectively and that this support is shaped by the public's perception of the police as legitimate authorities. Central to this perspective is procedural justice or how fairly and respectfully police exercise their authority. Tyler (2004) suggests that people are more likely to obey the law and cooperate with police when they believe the police are fair and just rather than solely focusing on the effectiveness of crime control. By doing so, the author suggests that law enforcement agencies should prioritize fairness in their interactions with the public, hoping it will lead to better public cooperation and improved overall policing outcomes.
Systemic racism and the use of force by police are critical areas of concern in the history of U.S. policing. Numerous studies have documented racial disparities in police stops, arrests, and use of force (Goff et al., 2016). Black and Latino communities, in particular, experience higher levels of police violence, which in turn has led to calls for reform and accountability. Goff et al. (2016) note that after adjusting for crime rates, Black residents experience higher rates of force compared to White residents. Goff et al. (2016) suggest that these differences in crime rates reflect systemic biases within law enforcement practices. Various reforms have been proposed and implemented in response to public outcry and empirical evidence of misconduct. These include body‐worn cameras, de‐escalation training, community policing initiatives, and policy changes regarding the use of force. While some reforms have shown promise in improving accountability and reducing incidents of violence, their effectiveness is often debated, and implementation varies widely across jurisdictions. Findings support the idea that strategic, data‐driven policing focused on high‐crime areas can be a powerful tool for reducing crime and improving public safety. Braga and Weisburd (2010) examined crime prevention strategies focusing on specific high‐crime concentrated areas known as “hot spots.” Their research highlights that targeting these areas with focused law enforcement efforts can significantly reduce crime and are more effective than traditional, broad‐based policing strategies. They note that successful interventions involve a combination of increased police presence and problem‐solving strategies tailored to the specific issues of each hot spot. Significant to their analysis is that these efforts do not simply displace crime from one area to another but can lead to overall reductions in crime. A series of systematic experimental studies by Jennifer Eberhardt provides specific contributors to the misalignments referenced.
The intersection of criminal justice experiences and race: Eberhardt et al. experiments
Previously acknowledged and at the heart of the current argument, the history of policing includes slave‐catching traditions. Jennifer Eberhardt addresses the intersection of race and the criminal justice system, implicit bias, and the societal impacts of racial stereotypes. As illustrative, she conducted five studies to examine how stereotypic associations can affect visual processing (Eberhardt et al., 2004). While study 1 revealed that Black faces enhance participants' ability to detect degraded images of crime‐relevant objects, studies 2–4 showed that activating abstract concepts, such as crime or basketball, creates attentional biases toward Black male faces. Studies 4–5 found that these processing biases are influenced by how much a social group member physically represents the group. Consistent with our PVEST framing and analysis, the authors suggest associations between social groups and bidirectional concepts acting as visual tuning mechanisms that shift perception and attention and that potentially influence decision‐making and behavior.
Eberhardt (2019) examine the role of racial disparities in the criminal justice system, highlighting how these disparities perpetuate inequality and shape public perceptions. They argue that racial disparities in the criminal justice system are not merely statistical facts but are deeply intertwined with social and psychological dynamics. They emphasize how the framing of numerical data on racial disparities affects public attitudes, noting that when disparities are presented without context, they can inadvertently reinforce stereotypes about criminality among marginalized groups. They explore the psychological processes behind how people interpret statistical data. They note that individuals often rely on implicit biases and preexisting stereotypes when processing information, which they suggest leads to distorted conclusions in justification of the status quo. Eberhardt et al. (2006) investigated whether the likelihood of a death sentence is influenced by how stereotypically Black a Black defendant is perceived to appear. Their findings revealed that in cases involving a White victim, defendants with more stereotypically Black features were significantly more likely to be sentenced to death.
Eberhardt (2019) explains the neuroscience and psychology of implicit bias, while showing how these biases are deeply rooted in human cognition particularly given the historical basic for American policing previously described. She suggests that biases are not restricted to overt racism but are ingrained, unconscious processes that affect everyone. Eberhardt explores how Black individuals are disproportionately linked to crime in societal perceptions and how this bias impacts law enforcement actions, judicial decisions, and the treatment of suspects. She goes on to highlight how these racial biases are also reflected in educational contexts, affecting students and workers, perpetuating inequities in education and workplace settings. Black students are more likely to be labeled as problems and face harsher discipline compared to their White counterparts for similar behaviors. Okonofua and Eberhardt (2015) conducted two experiments, testing the hypothesis that racial stereotypes partly drive racial disparities in school disciplinary outcomes by leading teachers to escalate their negative responses to Black students across repeated interactions. Their findings suggest that race influences not only how specific behaviors are interpreted but also how perceivers recognize behavioral patterns over time. Eberhardt (2019) delves into how bias distorts visual perception, affecting how people see others and remember events. She discusses how these biases can influence decision‐making, such as identifying faces or evaluating ambiguous situations. Despite the pervasive nature of bias, Eberhardt suggests that awareness and intentional actions can mitigate its effects. Okonofua and Eberhardt (2015) conducted two experiments, testing the hypothesis that racial stereotypes partly drive racial disparities in school disciplinary outcomes by leading teachers to escalate their negative responses to Black students across repeated interactions. Once more consistent with a PVEST analysis, their findings suggest that race influences not only how specific behaviors are interpreted—but also relevant to identity's role—as well as suggest how perceivers recognize or infer behavioral patterns over time.
More recently, Field et al. (2023) discussed the development of tools to analyze speech data in the context of law enforcement and the potential of speech processing technologies to identify patterns of behavior and language that may indicate or identify biased actions by police officers. The authors propose using speech processing techniques including automatic speech recognition (ASR) and natural language processing (NLP), to analyze police–civilian interactions. They aim to uncover patterns of bias, aggression, or excessive force in police conduct. The authors describe the development of a speech processing pipeline that includes the transcription of audio recordings, sentiment analysis, and linguistic analysis. This pipeline could be used to evaluate body‐camera footage, 911 calls, or other recorded interactions between law enforcement and the public.
In completing this section, another theme in the historical development of policing in the United States is technology's increasing integration and role, including predictive policing algorithms, surveillance tools, and body‐worn cameras. Ferguson (2017) suggests that these practices offer potential benefits including greater targeted and data‐driven approaches to law enforcement while also raising concerns around privacy, civil liberties, and the potential for bias in algorithmic decision‐making. There is a risk that big data policing could reinforce existing racial biases, as the data used to predict crime often reflects historical patterns of over‐policing in minority communities as well as general concerns about surveillance (Ferguson, 2017). Although not usually considered, the noted practices have implications for the critical role of reciprocal socialization needs and traditions. Accordingly, and given its theoretical relevance, a short review is provided for demonstrating its salience for MYCs' successful transition into adulthood especially as linked with identity‐relevant assumptions having to do with appreciation and respect.
Reciprocal socialization
Reciprocal socialization refers to the bidirectional nature of socialization between individuals in their social contexts, including families, peer groups, and communities. These processes reflect the complex, interactive progressions through which individuals influence and are influenced by others in their environments. Notably, the bidirectionality of PVEST component processes makes it a salient framing device for the current stratagem: reciprocal socialization. Central to its incorporation is the idea that the development of children and throughout adolescence are periods not solely shaped by parents, teachers, or societal norms but—reciprocally—that they also influence the attitudes, behaviors, and psychological processes of adults in their surrounding social contexts. Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory presents a comprehensive view of reciprocal socialization, noting how individuals are influenced by and influence various systems around them. Reciprocal socialization has significantly affected developmental outcomes, including emotional regulation, social competence, and cognitive development. Reciprocal socialization processes—critical to the development of autonomy and self‐regulation and this bidirectional influence—helps shape youths' cognitive and emotional competencies while affecting parental perceptions and reactions (Kuczynski, 2003).
While reciprocal socialization is particularly pivotal for parent–child interactions, it also occurs in peer groups and educational settings. While youth influence each other's behaviors, attitudes, and learning experiences, adults in these settings (teachers, staff, etc.) also adapt to the needs and behaviors of students in similar ways. Reciprocal socialization also occurs within larger cultural and societal frameworks. However, these processes and patterns are not uniform and may have different manifestations depending on cultural norms surrounding authority, autonomy, and family structure. Kagitcibasi (2007) examined how these reciprocal socialization processes can differ across cultures, noting that in more “collectivist cultures,” reciprocal socialization may involve stronger interdependence between different generations of people compared to “individualistic cultures,” where values such as autonomy and independence are more highly valued. As societies change, so too does the reciprocal socialization process. Youniss and Smollar (1985) demonstrate how reciprocal socialization in the adolescent–parent relationship can shift in response to broader social changes, including increased adolescent autonomy in Western cultures. Changes in worldviews, gender roles, and familial structure can also shape and be shaped by these processes.
As referenced, a significant context for reciprocal socialization is in interactions with law enforcement and the legal system. There have been several efforts to improve the socialization process between law enforcement and communities. Some programs focus on improving dialogue and collaboration between police and community residents. These have been shown to reduce crime and improve community relations (Gill et al., 2014), but their success depends on a sustained commitment from both parties. Any breakdown of such efforts in trust or commitment can easily reverse any progress made (Carr et al., 2007). Linked to these processes are the professional training and socialization practices of police officers. The way officers are socialized into the force influences how they perceive and engage with the public, thus shaping the reciprocal socialization process from the beginning of their careers (Rahr & Rice, 2015). Training and socialized beliefs affect expressions of humanity and perspectives concerning human worth. Viewpoints concerning inferred value and appreciation impact the nature and character of real and potential relationships and interactions, thus, a brief review is provided.
Contributions of appreciation and respect
The study of appreciation shows that it is a critical component in human interactions—and given the prior reviews—there may be far‐reaching psychological, organizational, and philosophical implications. As a fundamental aspect of human well‐being and the efficacy of interpersonal relationships, appreciation fosters positive emotional, cognitive, and social outcomes. Its ability to foster positive emotions, reinforce social bonds, and enhance motivation makes it a crucial component in various domains. Appreciation is recognizing and valuing someone's qualities, efforts, or contributions. Adler and Fagley (2005) describe appreciation as a multi‐faceted construct, emphasizing the emotional experience of gratitude and the cognitive recognition of worth or value. Appreciation can be linked to aesthetics and theories of value.
Research has shown that appreciation can have significant psychological and emotional benefits. Adler and Fagley (2005) conclude that those reporting higher levels of life appreciation show more life satisfaction, positive emotions, and resiliency. Appreciation can buffer against negative emotions, such as depression and anxiety, by reorienting focus from negative issues or problems toward more positive ones and, thus, is significant to interpersonal and romantic relationships. Individuals who feel appreciated by their partners are more likely to report relationship satisfaction (Gordon et al., 2012). Although universally applicable, the general appreciation principles show cultural variations that influence expression and perceptions. Tsang et al. (2009) note that individualistic cultures, such as those in Western countries, tend to focus on verbal expressions of appreciation, while collectivist cultures emphasize implicit and nonverbal recognition. Respect for the variation should be salient, particularly for interactions highly salient during adolescence when youth navigate spaces more often independently.
The philosopher Immanuel Kant (1785) described respect as a central component of human dignity, not something dependent upon one's actions or achievements. Instead, respect is due to humans by their inherent worth as human beings. Darwall (1977) echoed Kant's formulation and characterized respect as something unconditional and linked to the intrinsic moral worth of the person. Lawrence‐Lightfoot (2000) characterizes respect as a complex web of behaviors and attitudes concerned with the dignity and inherent worth of individuals and their respective contributions. Central to this definition is the emphasis on the relational and social dimensions of respect. Following upon Kant and Darwall, this conceptualization acknowledges a person's dignity and humanity.
When individuals feel respected, they are more likely to experience a sense of competence, autonomy, and relatedness to others. In environments where individuals feel disrespected or undervalued, they often report fostered stress, resentment, and disengagement (Deci & Ryan, 2000). Respect can also serve as a protective factor against conflict during relationships. Huo and Binning (2008) found that individuals who perceive high respect are less likely to engage in destructive conflict and are more inclined to use positive conflict‐resolution strategies. Some suggest that respect also plays a central role in how individuals fulfill their potential beyond the effects of social cohesion and self‐worth. Honneth (1995) argues that individuals require respect to realize their potential and to maximize meaningful participation in societal life. Thus, disrespect functions not only as a personal injury but may be seen as a form of injustice that undermines a person's ability to achieve and maintain an equal standing in society.
As suggested, respect, in this context, interacts at both the individual and organizational (social) level toward the success or failure of an organization's activities. Without question, it is impossible to predict the impact of “in‐the‐moment stress” on self‐reported socialized intentions to communicate respect. Nonetheless, our current effort illustrates, with qualitative data for MYC, the self‐reported positionality of respect findings held for police officers, given the reported reciprocal socialization experiences experienced within families. Our view of the preliminary effort with MYC was to collect autonomously provided youth data to understand the reciprocal socialization messages inculcated in youth by parents and families. We viewed this preliminary research task as a strategy for obtaining MYCs' self‐reported understanding of parental/family reciprocal socialization responsibility in preparing youth to navigate hazardous environments due to the frequent problem of over‐policing in minority communities. The research strategy's breadth required a particular review before describing the project's methodology.
Adolescent analysis background and approach
A grounded theory approach was deemed critical to center the discrete voices of youth and law enforcement officers. As a framing, it provides opportunities to allow their words to direct the analysis rather than using existing discourses on youth‐policing relationships/views that could misconstrue or cloud what individuals actually think and say. Previously acknowledged in the review of linked kinds of literature, reciprocal socialization suggests the bidirectional nature of socialization between individuals in their social and particularly organized physical contexts, including parents, peer group members, and others sharing contexts with youth including policing professionals. These exchanges reflect the complex, interactive processes through which individuals influence and are influenced by others in their environments. Untoward comments and assumptions by some provide an inference that respectful, positive, and bidirectional identity‐relevant impacts may be absent in the lives of youth; also extrapolated and possible is that untoward exchanges with policing professionals may be due to an under‐socialization of youth in urban settings. Central to this is the idea that the development of children is not solely shaped by parents, teachers, or societal norms; the latter also influence adults' attitudes, behaviors, and psychological processes in their surrounding social contexts. As described in the introduction, Spencer's PVEST framing aids recognition that people develop their identities within contexts representing varying degrees of human vulnerability that, as well, represent context‐linked stress situations (i.e., the balance or imbalance between challenges vs. accessible supports), and the interaction precipitates the need for reactive coping that can either be maladaptive as a strategy or its reverse: adaptive. Our review of the coded qualitative findings for adolescents suggests that youth report views concerning respect for police. Thus, of interest is how police report interactions with youth and whether there is evidence that prior respect‐emphasizing behaviors have been part of youth's reciprocal socialization history with LEOs (i.e., as reported by LEOs). The emphasis on “reciprocal socialization” is critical because parental socialization represents perspectives that acknowledge the vulnerability of police officers—and thus, the need for youth to respect the differences in police–youth positionality as a positive and adaptive coping strategy. Intended efforts are never quite at 100% efficacy; however, our findings indicate that most of the 45 youths interviewed have reported benefitting from family provided reciprocal socialization influences that suggest their parallel expectations for care, concern, and support when interacting with police officers. Thus, as framed, this project is interested in interrogating and reporting on LEO's coping with stress‐scaffolded interactions with youth's reciprocally socialized and expected respect‐based interactions with LEOs. An underlying question is whether the exchanges for both parties of this uneven power exchange provide options for mutuality of care and respect, often achieved with white adolescent youth or those residing in affluent communities. Considering the meaning‐making perspective provided from the PVEST scaffolding perspective (refer to Figure 1) and the potential reactive coping born of disrespect and dehumanizing feelings of lack of care from policing professionals who represent an important element of community, the consequent question is essential. Do the exchanges from police officers' positionality when interacting with youth mirror reciprocal socialization for respect, as reported for most of the MYCs interviewed for the current project. Following the Methods section, the adolescent narrative is provided as the opening to the overall Findings Section. The illustrative preliminary narrative for MYC provides a context. It allows greater appreciation for subsequent findings to be reported.
We provide anonymized interview data from police officers. In autonomous, audio‐only recorded interviews, obtained as open and closed‐end interviews, LEOs' views about MYC are presented. Findings suggest misalignments between MYC reports about LEOs holding respect vs. traditional beliefs about youth as obtained for professionally trained, sworn LEOs. MYC report LEO behavior/responses that suggest misalignments with MYC's reported intended and socialized behaviors reinforced for youth by parents when interacting with police. We provide qualitative narrative exemplars of how the noted youth‐sourced respect for LEOs—representing a reciprocal socialization history in families—as a perspective compares with qualitative study findings for LEOs. The “misalignments” of patterned perspectives are informative; thus, we report on LEOs' frequent descriptions of MYCs' character that, in fact, lack realistic appraisals of MYCs' social situations, historical conditions with LEOs, and current opportunities.
METHODOLOGY
As referenced, this paper's research focus represents a specific theoretical‐based theme and targeted MYC/LEO research effort. It focuses on the opportunity for resiliency promotion and the interrogation of support required for highly vulnerable populations and communities. The reported findings obtained for the current LEO and MYC reciprocal socialization‐focused effort are part of a larger research project intending to secure insights for an ultimate LEO assessment tool development and resilience‐promoting LEO training program.
Adolescent interview data collection strategy
As illustrated in Table 1, a total of 44 audio‐only Zoom interviews with adolescent boys, mainly African American non‐Hispanics (82%), between 12 and 18 years, were conducted by an interviewer (i.e., a male, African American, social work‐trained interviewer) between 2022 and 2023.
TABLE 1.
Sample demographics.
| Race/ethnicity | Age (years) | U.S. region | Grade | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | ||||
| Non‐Hispanic Black or African American | 34 | 77% | 12 years | 2 | 5% | Midwest | 29 | 66% | 6th grade | 1 | 2% |
| Hispanic Black or African American | 2 | 5% | 13 years | 4 | 9% | Northeast | 8 | 18% | 7th grade | 4 | 9% |
| Hispanic White | 5 | 11% | 14 years | 5 | 11% | South Central | 7 | 16% | 8th grade | 3 | 7% |
| Hispanic (biracial: Asian) | 1 | 2% | 15 years | 6 | 14% | 9th grade | 3 | 7% | |||
| Non‐Hispanic White | 2 | 5% | 16 years | 11 | 25% | 10th grade | 9 | 20% | |||
| 17 years | 12 | 27% | 11th grade | 9 | 20% | ||||||
| 18 years | 4 | 9% | 12th grade | 13 | 30% | ||||||
| Graduated | 1 | 2% | |||||||||
| Unspecified | 1 | 2% | |||||||||
| 44 | 100% | 44 | 100% | 44 | 100% | 44 | 100% | ||||
Eighteen‐year‐olds were permitted to participate only if they were still enrolled in high school. Although 66% of participants were midwestern, recruitment occurred in three cities in major US sectors: Midwest, South Central, and Northeast. The research team prepared an informational flier about the study with schools, youth organizations, and interested individuals contacted through snowballing strategies. No children (17 years old or younger) were contacted without the consent of a parent or guardian. Eighteen‐year‐olds were contacted directly by the research team as they were legal adults. The flier and detailed information sheet were shared electronically and/or physically as appropriate. If recruitment occurred through schools or youth organizations, the researchers first obtained permission for cooperation from the administration at each institution via a signed letter. After this, the researchers either visited the sites in person to speak directly to youth about the project and answer any questions or asked the administration to share the information with youth through verbal and emailed announcements. For snowball sampling, members of the research team directly handed fliers to interested youth; the team took no youth contact information. If the youth was interested, they could have their parent/guardian email the research team, who would then share the parental consent form before proceeding with any interview scheduling.
Consent was obtained through two modes, depending on the age/legal status of the participant. For youth aged 12–17, written parental consent was obtained through a signed parental consent form first, and youth verbal assent was obtained immediately preceding the interview. For youth aged 18, written consent was obtained at any point before the interview through a consent form addressing the participant as a legal adult. All youth received $20 Visa gift cards upon submission of the signed consent forms; they received an additional $20 gift card upon participation in the interview. The one‐time interviews, conducted over Zoom (audio‐only), were scheduled at convenient times for the participants. They were recorded and sent to an outside contractor for transcription.
Overall law enforcement officer (LEO) data collection strategy and sample description
This project is broadly aimed to understand law enforcement officers' (LEOs) perspectives on youth, specifically MYC. This aim was pursued by examining two primary overall research questions, although only the first research question is reported for the current effort (R1.): What are LEOs' perspectives on youth and MYC? (R2.) How does procedural language (i.e., the language used in Broadcast Police Communications (BPCs) between dispatchers and LEOs) affect these perspectives? Zoom (audio‐only) qualitative interviews were conducted with law enforcement officers (N = 54), and a thematic analysis approach was utilized to generate thematic findings related to the primary research questions. For the primary research question, respondents were asked five linked queries; the sub‐questions and frequencies are provided in Table 2 and inserted below.
TABLE 2.
Responses of law enforcement officers: “What are LEO perspectives about youth, and male youth of color?”
| N | % | |
|---|---|---|
| #5 Do you think MYC trusts LEOs to be fair when upholding the law and doing their jobs? | ||
| Yes | 25 | 55.5% |
| No | 13 | 29% |
| Nonbinary | 7 | 15.5% |
| Total | 45 | 100% |
| #6 Do you think LEOs trust MYC to abide by the law in most circumstances? | ||
| Yes | 30 | 65.2% |
| No | 14 | 30.4% |
| Nonbinary | 2 | 4.3% |
| Total | 46 | 100% |
| #7 Do you believe this LEO‐MYC relationship has an impact on your work? | ||
| Yes | 43 | 82.7% |
| No | 5 | 9.6% |
| Nonbinary | 4 | 7.7% |
| Total | 52 | 100% |
| #9 Do you think LEOs behave differently in their relationships with MYC as opposed to their relationships with male youth who are not MYC | ||
| Yes | 16 | 31% |
| No | 23 | 45% |
| Nonbinary | 12 | 24% |
| Total | 51 | 100% |
| #10 Do you think MYC might change their behavior if they think they're being racially profiled by LEOs? | ||
| Yes | 46 | 87% |
| No | 4 | 7.5% |
| Nonbinary | 3 | 5.5% |
| Total | 53 | 100% |
In particular, responses to questions 7 and 10, as listed in Table 2, suggest a particular level of misalignments of meaning making. LEO responses s provide strongly consistent response patterns (i.e., in excess of a 80% consistency rate) as perspectives about MYC. Virtually 83% of responses for question seven acknowledge that the MYC–LEO relationship has an impact on LEO's work. Significantly, and at the same time, almost 90% of LEO responses indicate a preference for Black youth surveillance as an effective policing strategy in response to the question: “Do you think MYC might change their behavior if they think LEOs are racially profiling them?” (see Table 2, Question 10).
LEO sample demographics
Provided from the completion of the virtual 1.5‐h Zoom and voice‐only interview, the 54 LEO interviewees mostly self‐identified as male and white (see Table 3).
TABLE 3.
Demographics for law enforcement officers.
| Age | Race | Career length | Gender | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | ||||
| 20–29 | 3 | 6% | White (non‐Hispanic) | 29 | 54% | 0–5 Years | 6 | 11% | Male | 35 | 65% |
| 30–39 | 16 | 30% | Black/African American (non‐Hispanic) | 17 | 31% | 6–10 Years | 10 | 19% | Female | 19 | 35% |
| 40–49 | 14 | 26% | Hispanic | 5 | 9% | 11–15 Years | 5 | 9% | |||
| 50–59 | 19 | 35% | Biracial | 1 | 2% | 16–20 Years | 8 | 15% | |||
| 60–69 | 2 | 4% | Asian | 1 | 2% | 20+ Years (Retirement Eligible) | 23 | 43% | |||
| Other | 1 | 2% | No Response | 2 | 4% | ||||||
| Total | 54 | 100% | 54 | 100% | 54 | 100% | 54 | 100% | |||
Research question and qualitative analysis strategy
Provided in Table 2 were five binary and nonbinary type LEO responses to the study's basic research question (i.e., “What are LEOs' perspectives on youth, and MYC?”) (refer to Table 2). We also approached the study's question as a qualitative thematic analysis strategy. Thematic analysis is a qualitative methodology that comprehensively examines a dataset to detect, analyze, and report repeated patterns. Thematic analysis is well known for its flexibility as an approach, as it can be applied to a breadth of research inquiries across designs and sample sizes (Kiger & Varpio, 2020) and was chosen to answer the project's research question as it is “an appropriate and powerful method to use when seeking to understand experiences, thoughts, or behaviors across a data set (Kiger & Varpio, 2020, p. 848).” Notably, with thematic analysis, researchers can use inductive or deductive approaches to theme the data. An inductive approach (e.g., a bottom‐up process) is derived from the data from participants' voices; this means that researchers examine participants' statements and codify the essence of those statements. describe it as, “a process of coding the data without trying to fit it into a pre‐existing coding frame, or the researcher's analytic preconceptions.” Deductive coding (e.g., a top‐down process), conversely, is a research‐driven, preexisting theory‐driven approach to analysis that is useful in focusing on questions or theories driven by the researcher (Kiger & Varpio, 2020). Together, these approaches can be utilized to thematically analyze qualitative data.
Data collection: law enforcement officers
Data were collected via one‐on‐one interviews with law enforcement officers (n = 54). Interviews were recorded and transcribed. The interview was comprised of four sections: (1) demographic questions, (2) Broadcast Police Communication (BPC) projections and related questions, (3) a vignette and related questions, and (4) an open‐ended interview. Only data sources (1) and (4) were included for the current project. Transcriptions were saved and uploaded to Dedoose qualitative coding software. Regarding data collection, notably, one participant (the first participant), received original questions/procedures from study protocol, and through lessons learned from that process, subsequent interview questions with the remaining 53 participants were adjusted. The first participant's interview was retained and analyzed with the remainder of the data, excluding quantitative data that differed (or was not collected) from the larger sample.
OVERALL ANALYSES AND FINDINGS
This section first reports on the adolescent interviewees' interview findings, which provide context. Also included are reports from the 54 LEO interviewees' interviews.
Adolescent interview findings
As acknowledged, data presented in the current paper are derived from a qualitative grounded theory analysis of interviews using Spencer's PVEST as a guiding framework. Phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory aids an appreciation of individual and trans (interactional) collective vulnerability status (risk vs. protective factor balance/imbalance) and resiliency both as outcomes and processes of life course human development (refer back to Figure 1).
Adolescent overall‐themed findings
Thus, PVEST framing relative to protective factor use, the theme and preparedness strategy—“reciprocal socialization for LEO respect”—generally represents youths' experiences. Accordingly, our analysis suggests that one of the major meaning‐making points for MYC for initial interactions with a law enforcement officer (LEO) is whether the interaction communicates acknowledgment or respect for the MYC's humanity and dignity. Research suggests that care is communicated through explanations or casual conversation rather than commands to the young person. Interviewees inferred the role of adults first and foremost as caregivers/guides and not as cultural gender/masculinity competitors. In this dynamic, the conceptualization of care remains ungendered mainly for youth, the primary identity marker being age and structured social authority of the other party (i.e., officer, teacher, parent). When LEOs enter situations without inferable or communicated care motivations, young people are left “to fill in the blanks” independently; therefore, PVEST as a scaffolding device and systems theory, it contributes insights as to the “why” and “how” of the process for particular LEO/MYC exchanges. The reciprocal socialization focus allows for understanding how youth have been prepared (or not) to engage in uncertain situations with LEOs. As an example, the following provides interviewer‐adolescent discussant exchanges and provides clarity about the salience of LEO respect, even for other youth.
Given our research question, we provide qualitative narrative exemplars of youth‐sourced respect for LEOs (i.e., suggesting family‐sourced reciprocal socialization history) and qualitative study findings for LEOs. Comparisons of MYC vs. LEO suggest “misalignments.”
Exemplar MYC qualitative interview description
As described, the male African American, middle adulthood, social work‐trained interviewer conducted a recorded audio‐only Zoom‐convened interview with each of the 45‐MYC. The recorded conversation with 17‐year‐old, Leon (“pseudonym” for participant #40, African American) provides responses that represent the theme and typical character of adolescent‐parental socialization agent exchanges as shared by the 45 MYC in their respective sessions with the project's interviewer.
Interviewer: (Following the question about prior interactions with police, the interviewer asked) “Do you feel they thought you respected them and their authority?”
Adolescent (“Leon,” 17‐year‐old): “Oh yeah, because I moved around immediately because I didn't want it to turn into nothing bigger than when it was. Just respecting authority.”
Interviewer: Ditto. Do you feel that they thought you respected them and their authority?
Adolescent (“Leon,” 17‐year‐old): “It's the same. It's getting around your friends and showing down and stuff. You got to always be respectful to the police because at the end of the day, they got authority over you in some shape and form. So it's always the same way. And plus you want to show your friends that's the way to handle and go about situations as far as talking to the police. You got to respect them.”
Interviewer: “Do you talk to anybody else? Think about stuff that happened in the news with police or just anything, who do you talk to about police matters in your family?”
Adolescent (“Leon,” 17‐year‐old): “Me and my mom, my sister and my stepdad, we talk about a lot of police situations and stuff.”
Interviewer: Do you get advice?
Adolescent (“Leon,” 17‐year‐old): “Yeah, in a way?”
Interviewer: What do you mean in a way? What does that mean?
Adolescent, (Leon continues): “They send a little video of somebody getting stopped and them not following the police rules, and they end up getting took out of the car, put in cuffs and going to jail because they want to fight with the police stuff. My parents are just telling me to prevent all that…just do as they ask.”
From a development‐sensitive and humanity‐recognizing perspective, achieving an identity is the task of adolescence. Thus, as a PVEST analysis and as suggested from Figure 1, the stress stemming from an interaction may be responded to differently. The experience of interpersonal challenge with a significant and nonfamilial authority figure, given the stress level of particular interactions, can be offset by the level of accessible support including effective socialization strategies. The reciprocal socialization reported by “Leon” can be viewed as a source of socialization‐sourced support (i.e., to offset the trans‐interaction challenge). Ultimately, “Leon's” coping with the net level of stress can be either negative (i.e., maladaptive) vs. positive (or adaptive); its character represents the meanings inferred from the exchange and the level of support available and inferred. Relative to potential escalation and the generation of stress, one can conclude that LEOs have the potential to significantly influence the outcomes of exchanges with youth by establishing contexts of care and concern vs. intolerance and overt reactive aggression. “Leon's” reported response was pretty typical of the 45 interviewees. As to the specific coping‐relevant framing, youths' responses may become defensive and confused, and often, it is this “race bias inferred moment” that potentially invokes racialized reactive masculinity patterns in male youth (see, e.g., Cunningham, 1999; Cunningham & Spencer, 2000; Spencer et al., 2004). As described ethnographically by sociologist Elijah Anderson's decades of ethnographies, outcomes depend upon the character of the situation and inferred assumptions about race. In fact, in his review of sociologist Elijah Anderson's research on race and civility, a critical focus provided by Duneier (2013) emphasizes Anderson's depiction of the stress‐relevant framing of racially imbued interactions as the “nigger moment” (Anderson, 2011, p. 291). As a PVEST framing, the particular “n‐moment stress” Duneier describes is “telling.” Duneier describes such an encounter: “a dramatic failure to treat blacks with the respect they deserve” (p. 812, Dunier, Duneier, 2013). Particularly regarding language and behavioral tone of the interaction, as suggested by Duneier's review of Anderson's ethnographic scholarship, it may be that MYC's hypermasculine‐maladaptive reactive coping responses previously reviewed can be understood given the inferred disrespect that such interactions precipitate (see Spencer et al., 2004). The reactive and maladaptive outcome may be unintended but may result in untoward behavioral escalation of the situation. Ideally and as adults in positions of seniority and authority, ideally, it behooves LEOs—as training opportunities—to maintain clarity re: positionality and power. Maintaining awareness of youths' developmental status and variations in the manifest support accessible from reciprocal socialization training potentially impacts vulnerability level for MYC and LEOs. Although acknowledging the importance of respect, youth may not yet fully understand systems of control and consequences of behavior, especially when threatened. At the same time, as our analysis shows, children are not ignorant of social power dynamics, even if they do not yet have the vocabulary to verbalize what they are gleaning from the situation. As noted, most of the participants acknowledge feeling respected or valued and one can infer their awareness of the importance of “interactional tone” and may acknowledge it when present or inferred as the following MYC interviewee illustrates.
Interviewer: Tell me about your experience with police given that activity.
Adolescent (“pseudonym Umberto,” interviewee #1, 16‐year‐old, non‐Hispanic African American) reports membership in a police‐community activity: “When most police officers that come in…and they greet us well. They'll say hi, hello, and things (like) that. They don't come off as rude and anything (like) that. And they just be there to support the youth. That's what their main focus is.”
The interviewer pursued further questioning with Umberto (16‐year‐old) by asking if he felt respected during the conversation and received the response:
Adolescent (16‐year‐old Umberto): “Yes, because when we shook hands, one thing my grandad always says (dis) if a man give you a firm handshake, that the level of respect right there. (…and continued describing his history and experiences).”
Interviewer: Positive? Okay. And go ahead, shoot. Tell me about your experiences over there.
Adolescent (16‐year‐old, Umberto): “Okay. Because I was in their Explorers program, it was an explorers program with XXth District. So when I first joined, I joined because my mom put me in there because in my fifth grade year I was doing bad in school and my mom didn't know how to deal with it, because my dad was back and forth to the hospital because he had lupus and I didn't know how to deal with that because I ain't have my dad there to be … We used to being with each other. So I didn't know how to deal with it. And then my mama put me in a program with them and we started doing a whole lot of community activities, such as cleaning up around our church, doing community outgoing events that we talk about what our explorers program is and things like that. I have been in that ever since up until now. So it's been a pretty positive route for me with XXth District.”
Interviewer: Okay, good. I'm glad to hear that. I'm glad to hear your experiences have been positive. So other than when you are in the police explorers, now you're doing the thing you're doing now with the group, have you had any other interactions or any other feelings about other police officers you may meet in the neighborhood or just your views on anything else? Or is that it, what you just told me? (See Appendix conversation listing provided)
Overall, the training of reciprocal socializing agents, as indicated by MYC quotes, suggests various strategies provided to youth for use during interactions with LEOs. In the case of 16‐year‐old Umberto (pseudonym), his mother pursued a police‐sponsored activity as a positive reciprocal socialization opportunity for her son due to his father's health challenges and lack of availability. The pattern of MYC responses for both “Leon” and “Umberto” mirror those of other adolescent respondents.
It appears that socialized strategies were internalized and cataloged by youth, utilized, referenced, and—as descriptively reported for the current project—thus, helped in positively framing the LEO–MYC interactional exchanges and opportunities. The assumptions behind and need for the socialization's structure was to decrease the stress suggested by Elijah Anderson's characterization of such interactions and framed as coping devices relevant for determinative “nigger moments.” The evident reciprocal socialization reported by MYC responses indicates youths' preparedness for respectful interactions and their intent to engage positively with LEOs, thereby inferring a relationship that is reciprocally respectful for both themselves and LEOs.
As well, and counter to the Elijah Anderson characterization as analyzed by Duneier (2013) given the probability of “heat in the moment exchanges” between policing professionals and young people, adolescents seem ready for alternative positive interactions. Data suggest an eagerness to respond in ways they view as respectful and cordial exchanges—and considered from a PVEST perspective—they believe serve as positive reactive coping responses when navigating spaces with LEOs. Given evident reciprocal socialization experiences with significant others serving as socializing agents, it is critical to describe how LEOs generally characterize—as cultural repertoires of humanity expressions—adolescents' behavior and interpersonal reactive coping response patterns.
Law enforcement officer interview findings: thematic responses and discussion
The overall question pursued precipitating the responses reported follows: “What are LEOs perspectives on youth and MYC?” The findings for open‐ and closed‐end responses in the LEO interview task are reported and exemplar closed‐end responses reported in Table 2 before LEO demographics listed in Table 3 (see Tables 2 and 3).
Closed‐end responses
As described in the Methods section, a few closed‐end questions were embedded in the open‐ended LEO interview. As described, for these data, coders created yes/no/nonbinary (i.e., neither yes/no response) codes. Not all participants responded to questions or were asked the question by the interviewer, thus, total N's varied (see Table 2). The greatest agreement across the 54 respondents was for questions 7 and 10. Eighty percent or more LEOs agreed that the nature of MYC–LEO relationships impact LEOs' work (i.e., Question 7 received 83% agreement); and, as well, almost 90% agreed with the statement (Question 10): “Do you think MYC might change their behavior if they think LEOs are racially profiling them?” (see Table 2). There is highly significant agreement that LEO–MYC relationships matter for quality of work life as reported for LEOs. In fact, the clarity of the former perspective is consistent with the respect needs noted by MYC. However, there was 90% LEO agreement with: “Do you think MYC might change their behavior if they think LEOs are racially profiling them?” In fact, the response pattern undermines the assumptions about and need for respect as framed by the latter question (refer to Table 2) and, as well, qualitative data previously described for MYC (adolescent respondents #s 40 and 1, Leon and Umberto, respectively). It suggests sources of misalignments between MYC and LEOs previously referenced and stress‐linked precipitating psychological status differentials, particularly characterized about race and power‐mixed interactions by sociologist Elijah Anderson and its salience reviewed by Duneier (2013). Thus, maybe it is not a “n‐‐‐moment” as characterized by Elijah Anderson that is at issue but a “mirror moment” as an opportunity or an awareness of the need for LEOs to reflect “on the self” given interactions with MYC and the significance of those interactions in the conduct of their work.
Open‐ended interview responses
When the open‐ended interviews were coded for responding to the overall question: “What are LEOs' perspectives on youth and male youth of color?” coded first were Major Themes. Table 4 provided the perspective particularly prominent for understanding the general response category: “What (LEO) Participants Think about Youth.” A Major Theme coded was that Youth are perceived as assets, which was noted and coded for 52 (of the 54) or 96% of the LEO interviewees(!). Important to remember is that for the closed‐end questions reported in Table 2, 90% of LEO respondents affirmatively to Question 10: “Do you think MYC might change their behavior if they think they're being racially profiled by LEOs?” (see Table 2). However, as described in Table 4, reports on the question category “What LEO Participants Think About Youth” suggest the major theme: “Youth are perceived as assets.” However, it is apparent from LEO responses for Tables 2 and 4, if youth are perceived as assets, nonetheless, their behavior is evaluated differently.
TABLE 4.
What LEO participants think about youth?: Major exemplary Asset Theme: subthemes, subcodes, and illustrative quotes.
| Category | What LEO participants think about youth |
|---|---|
| Major theme | Youth are perceived as assets |
| Subthemes |
#1 Potential to help communities #2 Provision of their perspectives and viewpoints |
| Subcodes |
#1a Community service; societal contributions #1b Future potential community leadership #2a Tech knowledge #2b Shape environment through their voices #2c New worldviews and societal contributions |
| Exemplary quotes |
OTTO: “God, that list is endless. Holy crap I mean, it could be anywhere from just being in general a good member of society, doing things we would like to see anybody do, helping their neighbors, working with the church, or homeless shelters, or food pantries, or those kind of things. A lot of kids now are really great with technology and coming up with different ways to help implement or use technology to help their families, their neighbors, their neighborhoods, the city. Getting involved in any number of things, whether it be politically in the schools.” (#49 Otto; White—non‐Hispanic, male, career years not available) WILLIAM: “Well, I think they could potentially contribute some leadership qualities. Uh, I won't say unfortunately, the thing about youth and peers, they look up to each other, they look up to their peers. If they would be able to show some leadership qualities in a positive manner, instead of a negative manner and take the lead and lead those that are looking up to them, I think that would be an asset to the community.” (#26; William, Black—non‐Hispanic, male, 34 year career) KYLA: “I mean, youth are the real forward thinkers. Obviously, they haven't had time to get stuck in a particular habit or behavior as older community members do. They're the innovators and the ones willing to see change. And that is important because the world constantly develops, especially with technology and other things like that. And the youth are the ones that are going to bring us to the future.” (#48; Kayla, White non‐Hispanic, female, 14 years of service) |
Specifically, Table 4 lists two subthemes for the major theme, Youth Are Perceived As Assets. Two or more subcodes are identified for each subtheme. The subtheme, Potential to Help Communities, represented two (2) subcodes: (a) Community Service/Societal Contributions, and (b) Future Potential Community Leadership. The second subtheme: Provision of Their Perspectives, and Viewpoints Represented Three (3) Subcodes: (a) tech knowledge, (b) shape environments through their voices, and (c) new worldviews and societal contributions. The exemplary quoted narratives are included in the fourth section of Table 4 for two males—one White (LEO #49, Otto; non‐Hispanic White, [career length not available]) and one Black (LEO #26, William, a non‐Hispanic Black who represents a 34‐year career length). Both LEOs express equally positive MYC characterizations regarding the major theme: Youth Are Perceived As Assets (refer to Table 4).
A second Subtheme under the major theme of “youth as assets” was acknowledging youth's perspectives and viewpoints (24/54). The specific subcodes identified were that youth offer technological knowledge, youth shape environment through their voice, and youth offer new worldviews and contributions to society. An exemplar quote for a female LEO is described in the fourth section of Table 4 for LEO #48 (Kyla, White non‐Hispanic, female, 14 years of service).
A particular hypothetical scenario was useful when LEOs were asked by the interviewer to consider: “When you are dispatched to a scene where a youth is thought to be committing a violent crime, please describe a typical offender profile that might come to mind, including race, ethnicity, gender, and any other expected identifier.” Two major themes emerged and are provided in Table 5.
TABLE 5.
Asked as a hypothetical “When you are dispatched to a scene where a youth is thought to be committing a violent crime, please describe a typical offender profile that might come to mind, including race, ethnicity, gender, and any other expected identifier.”
| Category | What youth profile comes to mind when a violent youth crime is underway? Black and/or male |
|---|---|
| Major themes |
“When you are dispatched to a scene where a youth is thought to be committing a violent crime, please describe a typical offender profile that might come to mind, including race, ethnicity, gender, and any other expected identifier.” #1 Black, Male or a combination #2 Context Matters: Influential on Preconceptions of a ‘Typical Violent Offender’ |
| Subthemes |
#1 Not significantly different from the major theme #2 The area mattered; views were guided by observations or given by dispatch (clarifying) information provided, and a reliance on dispatch information |
| Subcodes | No additional information garnered |
| Exemplary quotes |
Theme 1 (Race, gender): “Generally, from where I patrol, it would be a male African American between 15 and 17” (participant #12, Knox, Male, African‐America non‐Hispanic, 27‐years of service); “A juvenile black male.” (participant #47, Kingsley, White non‐Hispanic male, with years of service, N/Av [not available]); “The problem is, I've been exposed to this for so long, we're again in a primarily Black area. So, again, if I'm thinking of a youth, the thing (inaudible) psychologically it's going to be a male Black, wearing a hoodie dressed in dark clothes. That would probably be the profile of committing a violent crime.” (Participant #8, Kayla, female, White non‐Hispanic, 23 years of service). Theme 2 (Context matters): “Yeah, depending on what area. You're going to automatically…might have a certain image in your head because you know where you work and you know what you usually see in that area. But if I'm working up north that day, then I don't know. Or if I'm working on the east side, it can vary.” (Participant #10, Ursula, Female, Black non‐Hispanic, 16 years of career service). “I think that the answer to that question would have to be considering the demographics of where you work. So if you're primarily in a white community, in your mind you're going to think of a white youth or white offender. If you're primarily in an African American community, you're going to think of an African American youth offender” (Participant #20, Karen, Female, White non‐Hispanic, 23 years of service). |
The first theme was that Typical violent offenders were largely perceived as Black and/or Male (n = 25) [48%]; but another n = 14 [26%] perceived typical violent offenders as Black and Male. Together, approximately three‐fourths of interviewees inferred some configuration of the demographics including Black, Male or a combination. In parallel, a second major theme for 26% (n = 14) of LEOs was that Context matters (i.e., is Influential on Preconceptions of a ‘Typical Violent Offender’). There were no subthemes except for n = 17: The area mattered, and views were guided by observations or given by dispatch (clarifying) information provided, and a reliance on dispatch information. The following exemplary quote represents the first theme (“Typical violent offenders largely perceived as Black and Male”), is highly descriptive, and informative re: LEOs' thought processes and expectations.
The second major theme referenced for the hypothetical referenced was that Context is influential on preconceptions of a “Typical Violent Offender” (n = 14, 26%). The exemplary quotes in Table 5 are instructive and indicate that co‐occurring Contextual Influence matter. They serve to (1) shape participants' perceptions of youth offenders, (2) play a role in shaping youth's perspectives of LEOs, and (3) shape MYC/LEO relationships from participants' perspectives (see Table 5).
Recognizing that “context matters,” participating LEOs' perceptions about their relationship with MYC were posed as a question and referenced as specific to their jurisdiction: “How would you describe the relationship between LEOs and MYC in your jurisdiction?” Two major themes emerged from the coded responses: for the first major theme, participants described LEO/MYC relationships positively (n = 29; 54%); a second major theme was participating LEOs describing LEO/MYC relationships as mixed (n = 13; 24%). Significantly, there were no subthemes for either and, thus, no subcodes. Nonetheless, exemplar quotes were informative as included in Table 6 (example of major theme: positive LEO/MYC relationship).
TABLE 6.
Asked as a hypothetical but specific to your jurisdiction: “How would you describe the relationship between LEOs and MYC in your jurisdiction?”
| Category | What youth profile comes to mind when a violent youth crime is underway? Black and/or male |
|---|---|
| Major Themes |
Theme #1: Participants describe LEO/MYC relationships positively (n = 29; 54%) Theme #2 Participant LEOs describe LEO/MYC relationships as mixed (n = 13; 24%) |
| Subthemes | None identified |
| Subcodes | No additional information garnered |
| Exemplary Quotes |
Theme 1 (Positive, in jurisdiction): “Within my jurisdiction, I think pretty good actually, because we do a lot of programming. Our presence within the schools with charter and lab, I think, are unique. So I think we're in a very unique position, when we're dealing with like the kids on the bikes on the midway. And I don't think that those streets interactions really harm the view of our officers. So I think, in the university, we tend to have a lot better just interactions with youth than other departments may have” (#11, Kelsey, Biracial [Asian and Caucasian, non‐Hispanic], female, 29 years of service). “I'd like to say that we have a good relationship. We work at, we have officers assigned to the XXXX School. We also have officers assigned to the XX school, historic campus, and we have an office assigned to the hospital hall and they spend time going into the different schools and the different charter schools, and they have good relationships when there's a constant opportunity for that relationship to be developed.” (#20, Karen, female, White non‐Hispanic, 23 years of service). “In my jurisdiction, pretty good. A lot of the kids we have issues with are repeat offenders, but I think generally we're good. I know our department tries to do a lot of community policing and get involved with family events or festivals, stuff like that, that we can go out and make a presence national night out so we can interact with youth in that capacity (#21, Nicolas, male, White non‐Hispanic, 7 years of service).” Theme 2 (Mixed quality of relationship): “What I just said, sometimes it's certain officers. For me it's, Oh hey, officer, how are you doing?’ They might say a little joke or something or try to relate to me in terms of like, ‘oh, do you listen to this kind of music?’ That kind of thing. And then again, there's officers that they won't speak to or will say little things like, ‘How you doing; but screw your partner.’ That kind of stuff. It happens, but it's like a mix…” (#45, Mia, female, Black, 8 years of service) |
For the second major theme, Mixed Relationship, it occurred for 24% (n = 13) of the 54 respondents, an exemplary and patterned quote is listed in Table 6 (#45, Mia, female, 8 years of service).
Summary of study themes
The overall question posed: “What are LEOs' perspectives on Youth and Male youth of color?” as reported by 54 law enforcement officers, provides nuanced findings. Compared with the preliminary interviews of 45 adolescent male youth, particular themes are evident when using PVEST as a framing device. On the one hand—and not surprising given the high vulnerability status suggested by those representing the stage of adolescence—respect matters for youth of color. Adolescents are aware of the reciprocal socialization parents provide, given their goal of keeping youth safe and their awareness of youth's humanity status. From MYC quotes, they suggest that the opportunities for close relationships matter for MYC's feelings of value, appreciation, and support. That was a consistent message reported for the majority of the youth interviewed.
For LEOs concerning their perspectives on youth more generally and MYCs specifically, there were more often splits in perceptions except for one. Ninety‐six percent of all 54 interviewed LEOs perceived—more generally—youth as assets. However, the LEO evaluation—although positive—had less to do with their basic humanity than as resources given their inferred potential to assist their communities (35/54 or 64%) and, as well, their viewpoints and perspectives on the world (24/54 or 44%). The literature review provided suggests that an under‐interrogated source of challenge for policing professionals is the history of policing as a profession and its links with slave catching and, thus, implications for contemporary perceptions about persons who are Black and male; appreciating humanity status matters. LEOs' general mental representation of a “Typical Violent Offender” is Black and/or male (n = 25 or 48%) or perceived as Black and male (n = 14 or 26%). The pattern is both distressing and, as well, informing. Notably, Context is influential for Preconceptions of a “Typical Violent Offender” (n = 14; 26%) and was a co‐occurring theme (e.g., thematically noted in the same context in which participants shared their thoughts on typical violent offender profile). Also relevant for ecological considerations, a subtheme for Context was that the area or information/data learned from observations or given by dispatch provides significant meaning (17/54 or 31%).
As reported in the results for MYC, many young people feel optimistic about LEOs and wish to feel respect and appreciation from them. However, according to LEO participants, half believe that youth view LEO relationships/interactions negatively (n = 27, 50%), with a subtheme of these views suggesting specifically an anti‐police sentiment (n = 17). In addition, and importantly, close to a third of LEO participants believe that youth view LEO relationships/interactions positively (n = 17; 31%).
An important finding for LEO participants of the study is that contextual variables such as family, social media, and environment shape youth's perspectives of LEOs (n = 21; 39%). Notably, when LEO participants were asked how they would describe the relationship between LEOs and MYC, the majority described LEO/MYC relationships positively (n = 29; 54%) and some described LEO/MYC relationships as Mixed (n = 13; 24%). An essential and favorable inference from this study is that important program and training implications may be drawn from the patterned LEO findings. On the one hand, it is evident that MYC report that they expect and want respect and appreciation; apparent, as well, is the need for support given the challenges precipitated by their thinly resourced communities and family challenges (e.g., a chronically ill parent, which is a consistent health disparities concern). However, at the same time, LEO reporting suggests their perceptions of youth as having positive attributes (i.e., very specific assets); at the same time, however—and an important consideration when framed from a PVEST analysis in regards high vulnerability status—LEOs appear to lack a full understanding of the significant level of MYC's high vulnerability status as contributed to by the power of very active criminality stereotypes that frame MYC's experience of adolescence as youth pursue necessary developmental tasks. Although fairly general issues are addressed in the literature, such reports frequently fail to account for the nuanced and under‐interrogated history of policing as experienced in contemporary life given the fragility of adolescence; at the same time, LEOs report high expectations for competence, productive coping, and the successful formation of an efficacious sense of self in contexts that represent particular contextual conditions.
In fact, Swidler (1986) explores the dynamic interplay between culture, symbols, and human behavior. It is argued that culture is not only a set of static symbols but is actively used by individuals to guide current actions and strategies. The perspective emphasizes the practical and strategic dimensions of culture and suggests that individuals draw upon cultural symbols and meanings to navigate their social worlds and make sense of their experiences. Swidler's perspective encourages a viewpoint of culture as a toolkit for deployment in various situations, influencing decision‐making, and shaping interactions within society and states:
Strategies of action are cultural products; the symbolic experiences, mythic lore, and ritual practices of a group or society create moods and motivations, ways of organizing experience and evaluating reality, modes of regulating conduct, and ways of forming social bonds, which provide resources for constructing strategies of action…these relationships vary across time and historical situation. Within established modes of life, culture provides a repertoire of capacities from which varying strategies of action may be constructed. Thus culture appears to shape action only in that the cultural repertoire limits the available range of strategies of action. (Swidler, 1986, p. 284)
The broad meaning‐making framing afforded by PVEST links vulnerability status, unavoidable stress, and LEO's culturally relevant role performance. The analysis may have instructive training and relationship‐based programming implications for everyday interactions with citizens (i.e., particularly MYC). A nuanced “history as context” perspective representing the chronosystem from Bronfenbrenner's (1979) EST allows particular conceptual opportunities. An inferred minority family focus on respect of law enforcement officers (LEOs) strategy affords a method for keeping MYCs safe as they autonomously navigate spaces in the pursuit of meeting developmental tasks expected in preparation for adulthood. Thus, as noted, interview data collected on 45, mainly Midwest adolescents, provides a perspective on youths' self‐reported reciprocal socialization experiences and affords a novel context. The interviews of 54 sworn police officers allow an examination of LEOs' meaning making particularly about male youth of color (MYC). As provided in the opening literature review, a history of the nation's policing tradition aids an interrogation of LEO perspectives. It reinforces the importance of moving from a stress‐narrow perspective to one, as well, highlighting not just its framing as a “n‐‐‐moment,” acknowledged and emphasized by Elijah Anderson but, alternatively, to one emphasizing the importance of “mirror moments” for the responsible “adults in the room.” Critical are training and adult socialization opportunities that highlight the need for LEO's self‐reflection and training content innovations that emphasize, scaffold and ruminate on LEO/MYC history‐linked interactions and behavioral outcomes.
DISCUSSION
The research and findings reported provide several important contributions to the literature. First, regarding the contextualization of reciprocal socialization and the emphasis on respect, a particular insight is evident and important. The interplay of male youth of color (MYC) and law enforcement officers (LEO) is deeply rooted in historical, cultural, and systemic influences. Significantly, this study highlights the dual vulnerabilities of MYC and LEO, emphasizing a reciprocal socialization perspective and theoretical contribution. Phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory affords a foundational framework for explaining how interactions reflect and shape identity formation. MYCs are navigating adolescence—a stage marked by identity exploration—within a context of perceived systemic bias. Their reported experiences underline the importance of respect as both a protective mechanism and a developmental milestone critical to youth's identity formation.
Second, youth's viewpoints on respect and authority provide a minimally referenced adolescent perspective. The youth interviewed displayed an understanding of respect as a two‐way process. Their acknowledgment of police authority often stems from family socialization, as they adopt behaviors aimed at de‐escalation and mutual understanding. Youth narratives illustrate how respect is consciously extended toward LEOs, even in situations involving peer dynamics. Such behavior, shaped by family discussions and media portrayals of police interactions, highlights the internalization of respect as a survival strategy.
A critical third theme is that conversely, the perspectives shared by LEOs reveal stress‐related challenges stemming from their professional roles and societal expectations. Misalignments in how MYCs' respectful behaviors are perceived by LEOs are apparent. This gap can exacerbate tensions and reinforce stereotypes, undermining potential trust and limiting opportunities for “mirror moments” and reflection. The reported findings indicate that reciprocal respect—grounded in mutual recognition of shared humanity—is often disrupted by preconceived notions and systemic structures of power.
The intersectional vulnerabilities of MYCs—as youth, as males, and as members of minority communities—compound their experiences with LEOs and underscore an important and historically salient fourth major theme. These layers of identity intersect with a policing culture historically shaped by control and enforcement rather than trust‐building. Historical roots, including the evolution from slave patrols to modern policing, continue to influence contemporary dynamics. Addressing these ingrained disparities requires intentional shifts in training, community engagement, and policy frameworks.
A fifth data‐based insight suggests the crucial mediating role of appreciation and human dignity as mediators. Both respect and appreciation emerge as critical themes in mediating LEO–MYC interactions. Youth expect to be treated with dignity and recognize respect as a baseline element for positive engagement. However, the study's findings underscore the inconsistencies in how LEOs operationalize respect during interactions. Critical to acknowledge is that enhancing officers' appreciation for MYCs' perspectives and lived experiences could serve as a transformative approach to improve outcomes.
A sixth theme highlights the role of cultural and institutional reforms. The misalignment between MYCs' socialization and LEO practices indicates the need for culturally responsive training and policies. Culture refers both to the culture of the adolescence period and the culture of a community representing coping traditions associated with the nation's under‐interrogated slave history. Initiatives incorporating respect‐driven policing strategies and reciprocal socialization principles can foster trust and reduce conflict. Additionally, integrating community voices in the design of such programs can ensure relevance and sustainability.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This qualitative exploration of MYC and LEO interactions sheds light on the complex dynamics shaped by reciprocal socialization, respect, and systemic influences. By employing PVEST, the study demonstrates how identity formation in MYCs is deeply intertwined with their experiences of authority and respect. Despite efforts by many MYCs to navigate these interactions positively, systemic barriers and historical legacies often disrupt the potential for mutual understanding. Making use of the data as those included in this report should go a long way in upgrading training and, thus, “mirror moments.”
To bridge these divides, several recommendations emerge that also represent the PVEST contributions as a humanity emphasizing theoretical framing:
Enhanced training for LEOs: Training programs should emphasize the principles of reciprocal respect and appreciation, equipping officers with the skills to engage constructively with MYCs given the heightened potential of their interactions, thus—making use of the PVEST theorizing—provides sources of support while decreasing stress as dramatized from Elijah Anderson's depiction and Denier's (Duneier, 2013) interrogation of same.
Community‐based policing models: Implementing models that prioritize relationship‐building over enforcement can create safer, more trusting environments.
Policy reforms: Policies addressing systemic biases and promoting accountability are essential to dismantling historical inequities, but if analyzed from the theoretical framing perspective provided, they have everyday contemporary relevance and applicability.
Youth empowerment initiatives: Programs that amplify MYCs' voices and provide platforms for advocacy can foster resilience and agency.
Intersectional approaches: Acknowledging the unique vulnerabilities of MYCs and addressing these through tailored interventions is critical for promoting equitable outcomes.
This research underscores the urgent need for intentional efforts to reframe LEO‐MYC interactions. By prioritizing respect, appreciation, and shared humanity, stakeholders can work toward a future where these relationships are characterized by mutual trust and dignity rather than conflict and misalignment, thus, providing opportunities for eliminating the too frequent and prominent wrongful death events.
FUNDING INFORMATION
The data referenced in this publication were obtained with funding from the National Institute of Minority Health.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT
There are no known conflicts of interest to disclose.
PATIENT CONSENT STATEMENT
Parental permission was obtained before interviews with youths were conducted.
Supporting information
Data S1.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, a National Institutes of Health Division, made this research possible. The Social Sciences Division of the University of Chicago provided supplemental funding to the author. Drs. Ashlee Y. Flanagan, Kay Fujiyoshi, and Tasneem Mandviwala (alphabetized) provided critical research support, and UCPD Chief Kyle Bowman and Dr. Howard Jordan regularly and generously provided valued consultation. Dr. Michael Cunningham also provided highly substantive critical feedback and sincerely appreciated support. I acknowledge the support of Oliver Garland in the preparation and submission of this manuscript.
Spencer, M. B. (2025). Male minority youth and law enforcement officers' policing perceptions and reported experiences and practices: Qualitative exploration of reciprocal socialization beliefs regarding respect. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35, e70032. 10.1111/jora.70032
The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, part of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), sponsored data collection and preliminary analysis.
DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
The researchers have chosen not to make the data available.
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