The Police and Child Abuse
An Analysis of Police Decisions to Report Illegal Behavior
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9681573 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Cecil L Willis (University of North Carolina Wilmington, corresponding author), Richard H Wells (West Chester University) |
| Year | 1988 |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 695-716 |
| Publication date | 1988-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Criminology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0011-1384 • E-ISSN: 1745-9125 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1745-9125.1988.tb00860.x |
| OpenAlex | W2067088257 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 18 |
| References cited | 19 |
This research examines police decisions to report child abuse. A questionnaire was administered to 142 law enforcement officers at both municipal and county police agencies in a southern county. Vignettes were used to determine the response of police to several abuse events that differ in their nature and seriousness. Other items measured include dogmatism, knowledge of the reporting law, and experience reporting child abuse. The results indicate that the primary contributors to police decisions are definition of the behavior as serious, perception that the behavior is criminal, and race of the family. Conclusions and inferences are made regarding how these perceptions are formed and their impact on police discretion
Criminal justice · Criminology · Discretion · Enforcement · Law enforcement · Perception · Police department · Political science · Seriousness · Child Abuse and Trauma · Intimate Partner and Family Violence · Law · Policing Practices and Perceptions · Psychology
Seeking help, finding harm
Relationship Repair Strategies When Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect
Understanding and Addressing Racial/Ethnic Disproportionality in the Front End of the Child Welfare System
An Exploratory Study Assessing Relations of Demographic Characteristics With Police Recruits' Attitudes Toward Abuse of Children and Abusive Parents
Evaluating the Effects of Child Abuse Training on the Attitudes, Knowledge, and Skills of Police Recruits
Patterns of reported parent-child abuse and police response
Police Response to Violence and Conflict between Parents and their Minor Children
Policy Review of Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Statutes
Brief encounters
Policing juvenile delinquency in China
Reorganizing child protective services
Police discretion and elder mistreatment
Causes of police behavior revisited
Community attitudes
Social ecology and police discretion
Developmental Issues in the Impact of Child Maltreatment on Later Delinquency and Drug Use
Does 'Violent' Mean 'Bad'? Individual Definitions of Violence
Mandatory Child Abuse Reporting Laws
Varieties of Police Behavior
The authoritarian personality
The Ambivalent Force
Crime and Conflict
The Manners and Customs of the Police
Understanding violence
Police and policing, an introduction
The invisible justice system
The "Discovery" of Child Abuse
Police Response to Interpersonal Violence
Constructing Social Problems
The Police on Skid-Row
"Handling" Family Violence
Beyond Anomalies
Street-Level Justice
Police Encounters With Juveniles
Social background, emotionality, and belief as predictors of punitiveness toward deviants
| Unique citing works | 18 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,49 |
| Citation span | 1989 - 2026 (38) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 18 |