Procedural Justice, Legitimacy, and School Principals' Evaluations of School Resource Officers: Support, Perceived Effectiveness, Trust, and Satisfaction. (March 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Wolfe, Scott E.; Chrusciel, Margaret M.; Rojek, Jeff; Hansen, J. Andrew; Kaminski, Robert J.
• Is Part Of: Criminal justice policy review. Volume 28:Number 2(2017)
• Page Start: 107
• Page End: 138
• Publication Date: 2017-03
• Subjects: procedural justice -- legitimacy -- trust -- satisfaction -- school resource officer -- school crime -- perceptions of police; Criminal justice, Administration of -- United States -- Periodicals; 364.973
• DOI: 10.1177/0887403415573565
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0887-4034

Abstract

Violence and active shooter situations in schools have been important issues to the public, policy makers, and scholars in recent years. School resource officers (SROs) are widely used in efforts to address school crime-related threats. Yet, little is known about the factors that influence key stakeholders' (e.g., school principals) evaluations of such officers. The present study uses survey data from a sample of public school principals in South Carolina to examine the role of procedural justice theory in understanding evaluations of SROs. The results reveal that procedural justice is associated with principals' support for SROs, perceived effectiveness of SROs, and level of trust and satisfaction in SROs. The policy implications of the results center on the importance of SRO procedural fairness in maintaining quality relationships with top school administrators which may ultimately have a wider impact on the success of SRO programs.