Cited by 136Policing Practices and PerceptionsSocial and Intergroup PsychologyRacial and Ethnic Identity Research

Stereotype threat and racial differences in citizens’ experiences of police encounters.

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Najdowski, Cynthia J., Bottoms, Bette L., Goff, Phillip Atiba·2015·Law and Human Behavior

Abstract

We conducted 2 studies to investigate how cultural stereotypes that depict Blacks as criminals affect the way Blacks experience encounters with police officers, expecting that such encounters induce Blacks to feel stereotype threat (i.e., concern about being judged and treated unfairly by police because of the stereotype). In Study 1, we asked Black and White participants to report how they feel when interacting with police officers in general. As predicted, Blacks, but not Whites, reported concern that police officers stereotype them as criminals simply because of their race. In addition, this effect was found for Black men but not Black women. In Study 2, we asked Black and White men to imagine a specific police encounter and assessed potential downstream consequences of stereotype threat. Consistent with Study 1, Black but not White men anticipated feeling stereotype threat in the hypothetical police encounter. Further, racial differences in anticipated threat translated into racial differences in anticipated anxiety, self-regulatory efforts, and behavior that is commonly perceived as suspicious by police officers. By demonstrating that Blacks might expect to be judged and treated unfairly by police because of the negative stereotype of Black criminality, this research extends stereotype threat theory to the new domain of criminal justice encounters. It also has practical implications for understanding how the stereotype could ironically contribute to bias-based policing and racial disparities in the justice system.

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Registry

Crossref · 10.1037/lhb0000140

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  • Concern among people of color about being stereotyped by law enforcement officers as criminals is a source of anxiety.

    “There is also preliminary evidence that concern among people of color regarding being stereotyped by law enforcement of fi cers as criminals is a source of anxiety (Najdowski et al., 2015).”

    From A call to dismantle systemic racism in criminal legal systems. (2022) · cites this paper as Najdowski et al., 2015

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Authors
Najdowski, C. J., Bottoms, B. L., & Goff, P. A.
Affiliations
  • University at Albany, State University of New York (US)
  • University of Illinois Chicago (US)
  • University of California, Los Angeles (US)
Venue
Law and Human Behavior
Published
2015-10
Volume
39
Issue
5
Pages
463-477
ISSN
  • 0147-7307 (ISSN-L)
  • 1573-661X
OpenAlex
W2182214135
Cited by
136
References
92
Citations by year
2026: 25 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 7 · 2012: 1
FWCI
60.69
Type
journal article
Language
en
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Law and Human Behavior (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Scholars Archive - University at Albany (University at Albany, State University of New York) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Policing Practices and Perceptions
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Racial and Ethnic Identity Research
Keywords
stereotype threat, racial stereotypes, police encounters, racial differences, self-regulation, Black men, Black women
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Female, Humans, Male, Stereotyping, Police, Black People, White People, Young Adult, Racism

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