The role of work experience and individual beliefs in police officers' perceptions of date rape: An integration of quantitative and qualitative methods

Surveyed police officers from two police departments in the Midwest on their perceptions of date rape (N=91). The aim of this research was to examine the influence of officers' work experiences and general beliefs about women on their perceptions of date rape. Two approaches were utilized. First, using quantitative structural-equation modeling, a model that integrated work experiences and individual beliefs was evaluated using LISREL VII. Results suggest a direct path from the work experience variables to perceptions of date rape: Officers with more experience with rape cases held more sympathetic beliefs about data rape and date rape victims. Officers who found their training on rape to be very helpful, and those who reported that their work environment was sexualized and sexual harassment was a problem, were also less victim blaming. An indirect influence of these variables was also supported. Officers with more experience, those who perceived their training as helpful, and those with heightened awareness of sexual harassment in the workplace also held more favorable attitudes toward women, which, in turn, predicted less victim-blaming perceptions of date rape. Second, qualitative methods were used to have the police define and describe in their own words what has shaped their beliefs about date rape. These narratives were content analyzed by two raters. The qualitative results validated the quantitative findings as the officers were most likely to mention professional experience with rape cases and departmental trainings as important factors that changed their opinions. Work climate and personal experiences were also cited as influential. Implications for integrating qualitative and quantitative methods in research, and training interventions with police are discussed. The author thanks the Editor, Bill Davidson, Holly Angelique, Susan Englund, Doug Luke, Melody Scofield, and three anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on this paper. I also acknowledge Camille Johnson and Jody Venable for their assistance collecting and coding the data. This research was supported by a grant from the George W. Fairweather Fund.