Topic from Project Three Milestone: 

I have chosen the topic of police striking adults. This is a topic that resonates a lot with me for personal reasons. I am a huge advocate of non-violence and often teach my kids to deescalate without being physical. I believe that if we spent more time working to understand the underlying reasons people are committing crimes, we could reduce crime more effectively than incarceration itself. I believe a lot of police violence results from a place of fear rather than a place of understanding, and I’d love to gain a deeper knowledge on the public opinions of police violence. I'd also like to understand if race plays a role in perspectives of police striking adults. Understanding that racial profiling is a serious issue in this country makes me wonder if police violence is perceived differently by populations that aren't directly affected by it. 

Describe the key findings from your interpretation of the data for a general audience. 

Evidence shows a correlation between race and opinions on police striking adults. White persons are about 1.08% more likely than black persons to support police striking adults.

Summarize the background information for the scientific community. 

Statistical analyses have been run to determine whether a relationship exists between race and opinions on police striking adults. Research by Desilver, et al. (2020) shows discrepancies in feelings toward policing between whites and blacks. This research shows that blacks are about half as likely as whites to have a positive view of officers use of force (Desilver, et al., 2020). This research is further supported by a study conducted by Graziano & Gauhtier (2017) where evidence was found to support the notion that African Americans hold the most negative perceptions of police misconduct. The data presented in the present study uses a chi-square analysis to determine a relationship between race and opinions on police striking adults, which shows similar findings to the aforementioned studies.

Describe the major statistical findings for the scientific community. 

After running a chi-square analysis, we find the p value is <.05 so we reject the null hypothesis, This means we can conclude that there is, in fact, a correlation between race and opinions on police striking adults. The data also shows a more significant p-value when comparing the white race to other races. The greatest difference in opinion is held between whites and blacks, as compared to the opinions held between whites and other races. The graphs provided show the expected frequencies if the null hypothesis were true, and the observed frequencies obtained from our raw data. We can see that whites more often agree with police striking adults that blacks and other races do. If the null hypothesis were true and there were no relationship between race and opinions on police striking adults, the observed frequencies graph would more closely resemble the expected frequencies graph, where opinions are the same across races.

Represent the major statistical findings for the scientific community with graphs. 

Provide a concise summary appropriate for a general audience. 

This research was conducted to determine if a relationship exists between race and opinions on police striking adults. Findings support the conclusion that race and opinions on police striking adults are correlated, with whites being more accepting than blacks. We can use these findings to implement equality training in police academies and recognize the inconsistencies that exist in public opinion toward police conduct.

References

Desilver, D., Lipka, M., & Fahmy, D. (2020, June 3). 10 things we know about race and policing in the U.S. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/06/03/10-things-we-know-about-race-and-policing-in-the-u-s/ 

Graziano, L. M. & Gauthier, J.F. (2017, April 3). Examining the racial-ethnic continuum and perceptions of police misconduct. Policing and Society, (29, 6). https://www-tandfonline-

com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/doi/full/10.1080/10439463.2017.1310859