Building Connections Between Officers and Baltimore City Youth: Key Components of a Police-Youth Teambuilding Program

Animosity between youth and police officers reduces community-police collaboration and increases the likelihood of future negative encounters. The Baltimore Outward Bound Police Insight Program, a unique 1 day police-youth program, brings officers and middle-school students together for a day of tea...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Journal for juvenile justice Vol. 3; no. 1; p. 48
Main Authors Broaddus, Elena T, Scott, Kerry E, Gonsalves, Lianne M, Parrish, Canada, Rhodes, Evelyn L, Donovan, Samuel E, Winch, Peter J
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Arlington CSR Incorporated 01.10.2013
Subjects
Attitudes
Behavior
Police
Stereotypes
Students
Studies
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Summary:Animosity between youth and police officers reduces community-police collaboration and increases the likelihood of future negative encounters. The Baltimore Outward Bound Police Insight Program, a unique 1 day police-youth program, brings officers and middle-school students together for a day of team-building activities. Intergroup Contact Theory (ICT) supports the idea that bringing youth and police together under certain optimal conditions can improve the way members of each group view each other. This paper presents the findings from a qualitative study of the Police Insight Program and uses ICT as a framework to assess how the program facilitates stereotype reduction between officers and youth. Our analysis indicates that the program successfully brings officers and youth together in a situation in which they have equal status, share common goals, must cooperate to succeed, and have the support of authority figures. Additional key program components are the neutral environment, fun and engaging atmosphere, and open discussion of stereotypes. Outcomes observed and reported by participants include reduced stereotyping of the opposite group and a desire for future positive interactions. Our findings suggest that the Police Insight Program model could serve as a steppingstone toward improved relationships between officers and youth in Baltimore and elsewhere.
ISSN:2153-8026
2153-8026