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Analyzing Citizens’ Reported Levels of Confidence in the Police: A Cross-National Study of Public Attitudes Toward the Police in the United States and South Korea

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Abstract

Comparative police research has largely been based on qualitative or participatory techniques. The present study utilizes quantitative data collected from America and South Korea in 2005 to test the hypothesis that American citizens have higher levels of confidence in the police than their South Korean counterparts. The study further hypothesizes that citizens’ confidence in institutions such as the court and the government will influence levels of confidence in the police. Results obtained offered support for the stated hypotheses.

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Correspondence to Francis D. Boateng.

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The authors declare the following: First, we declare that we have no conflict of interest. Second, we declare that all procedures performed in the study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of Washington State University and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Third, we declare that since we used secondary source of data, we had no problem with informed consent.

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Table 5 Factor loadings of items measuring social capital

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Boateng, F.D., Lee, H.D. & Abess, G. Analyzing Citizens’ Reported Levels of Confidence in the Police: A Cross-National Study of Public Attitudes Toward the Police in the United States and South Korea. Asian Criminology 11, 289–308 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11417-016-9231-8

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