Understanding the drivers and impacts of disproportionate policing

About this project

The continued disproportionate representation of ethnic minority groups in the UK criminal justice system presents a significant challenge and priority for police, government, and society. However, such inequalities are not merely a product of police actions, they are interconnected with other factors that combine to produce patterns of social disadvantage and vulnerabilities among certain groups and communities. That these factors are likely to be amplified in the post-Covid environment, creates an ever-pressing need for research. Recognising its complexity, this project has been developed through a partnership between Staffordshire Police and Keele University. The jointly funded project aims to advance theoretical understanding of police disproportionality in the county through examining the impact of and interactions between range of psychological, behavioural, social, demographic, and organisational factors. The ambition is to both advance interdisciplinary understanding of the drivers and perceived legitimacy of police citizen encounters, while at the same time constructing pathways to impact to help produce more legitimate, risk-focused approaches to achieving proportionality in policing.

Please quote reference FNS 2021-26 when applying.

For any queries on the project please contact Professor Cliff Stott [Email Address Removed]