Police in the public opinion of youth

Abstract

On the basis of qualitative sociological surveys, the article presents certain aspects of public opinion of students of the Khabarovsk territory about the activities of the police, real and potential forms of interaction between the police officers and youth, directions of harmonizing relations between these social groups. The study showed that assessments of young people in these aspects are not uniform. In the collective consciousness of young people, the police mostly evoke positive associations. This is due, first of all, to the experience of personal positive interaction of students with the police officers, including as victims, or the experience of friends, acquaintances, relatives of respondents. Presence of similar experience, but substantively negative predetermined the spread of skeptical assessments of the activities of this law enforcement body in the student environment. The media, the Internet, and rumors also have a significant impact on the negative opinion of the police. Despite the presence of an unfavorable perception of the police, many respondents acted in cooperation with the police not only as victims or offenders, but, above all, in the role of those who assisted the police in solving the tasks facing it. The overwhelming majority of respondents expressed their readiness to help the police if necessary. The respondents see the main directions for optimizing interaction between young people and the police and increasing confidence in the latter in transforming the police as a social institution, but not in the society as a whole or Russian youth in particular.