Introduction

“What is being done to solve racial disparities in policing?” research project focuses on racial inequalities in policing. Racial disparities have been a major problem, with historians and scholars such as Pryor et al. (2020) arguing that “this problem is embedded in the story of the nation and its culture.” They say that “racial disparities in policing and police violence are sustained by systemic exclusion and discrimination, and fueled by implicit and explicit bias.”  It emphasizes the need for a systematic change to racial disparities issues such as discrimination and injustice. Based on the above idea, the research’s primary goal is “to understand the level of racial inequalities in policing, their causes, and how to address them.”

Summary Overview

A comprehensive literature review, survey questionnaire and interviews, and a measurement in criminal research were conducted. Citing other studies on racial disparities, the history of racial disparities in policies was explored. The research project discusses several studies and research projects, such as Desilver, Lipka, and Fahmy (2022) and People for the American Way (2022). These studies have helped in understanding the concept of racial disparities better. They have also suggested measures on how to hold officers accountable. Further, Wang’s (2022) data on racial disparities in police interactions is cited.

Current Status

The literature review, the project proposal, measurements in criminal research, and the study surveys, questionnaires, and interview segments have all been completed successfully. Both open and closed-ended questions regarding the survey questionnaires, providing the rationale for each, have also been employed. Data collection, analysis, and integration procedures are also discussed in depth. Also, the measurement section has been completed, in which accuracy has been emphasized.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the research project has acknowledged the existence of racial disparities in policing and discussed the potential solutions to the issue. I am confident and optimistic that this research will contribute to solving and even eradicating racial disparities in policing.

Challenges Encountered

One of the significant challenges encountered was choosing the right questions. I responded to this challenge by letting the answers and research goals guide me. The second challenge was balancing qualitative and quantitative data collection procedures. To overcome this challenge, I comprehensively revised the research objectives and survey questions to ensure they aligned with the data collection methodology. My last challenge was coming up with measurement principles, to which I responded by evaluating my research project’s goals and context.

Feedback Sheet: Creating a Research Project Proposal

Analysis of modifications made following submission

Incorporation of Recent Sources: Based on the feedback that the research proposal should incorporate recent sources due to relevance and up-to-date information, only recent studies (2019-2023) were cited.

Rationale- Using sources published in recent years is advisable since these sources are more current, meaning that they are more likely to explore the latest discoveries, theories, and information. The relevancy of a study is based on its accuracy, which is achieved by using current and extensive literature (Thomas et al., 2019).

Broadening of the research’s scope- The feedback suggested expanding the research’s scope for diversity.

Rationale- Thomas et al. (2019) argue that expanding the research scope and integrating a diverse range of actors helps better understand the value process and the research’s perspective. Also, a broad scope allows for comprehensively exploring the research questions and objectives.

Naturally Arrived At Modification

Timeline Modification- The initial proposed timeline was revised and adjusted as the research project developed.

Rationale- Adjusting the timeline ensured a realistic and manageable schedule for each research project phase. A realistic timeline helps plan tasks, track progress, and achieve targets.

Feedback Sheet: Literature Review

Analysis of modifications made following submission

Incorporation of Desilver et al. (2020) study report- Based on my submission feedback, the literature review needed to be more comprehensive. Therefore, another piece of literature that discusses racial disparities in policing had to be added. After extensive research, “Desilver, D., Lipka, M. & Fahmy, D. (2020). 10 things we know about race and policing in the US” journal, which extensively discusses police reports and state race relations in the US, was incorporated.

Rationale- The research is very informative since it reviews other peer-reviewed studies. Thus, the addition of this literature provided valuable insights into the issue of racial disparities in policing. 

Naturally Arrived At Modifications

Extensive focus on legislation and policy accountability- As the research development progressed; more focus was needed on the legislation process and the accountability of the police concerning racial disparities. Also, further research and readings emphasized the significance of legislation and police accountability measures. Ross et al. (2021) argue that legislation and policy accountability are essential in solving racial inequalities.

Rationale- This modification was crucial since it helped to comprehensively explore and discuss how legislation and policy accountability play a crucial role in solving racial disparities.

As the research project development continued, the literature review evolved, further exploring how racial disparities relate to factors such as gender and class.

Rationale- This modification enriched the research’s literature, leading to a better understanding of the topic. Racial disparities in policing is a complex topic that needs extensive research for better understanding.

Feedback Sheet: Measurement in Criminal Research

Analysis of modifications made following submission

Refinement of Operationalization- The feedback suggested a modification in operationalizing racial disparities in policing since the measuring principles in police-community investigation needed to be better defined and discussed. Thus, based on the feedback, there was a significant change in the operationalization of racial disparities in policing.

Rationale- Defining and extensively discussing police measurement concepts ensured that the research was comprehensive in examining and investigating the causes and solutions of racial disparities in policing.

Consideration of confounding factors- Cofounding factors are the “variables whose presence affects the variables being studied so that the results do not reflect the actual relationship” (Ross et al., 2021). However, if appropriately used, they can provide a more correct assessment of the true association. The feedback suggested considering confounding factors. As a result,  the measurement in criminal research was modified to address how factors such as demographics and class would be considered in the analysis.

Rationale- Considering confounding factors such as class and demographics was aimed to avoid potential bias and strengthen the validity of the research findings.

Naturally Arrived At Modifications

As a result of the research project development process, the measurement in the criminal research segment was modified to cover the evolution of racial disparities in policing by considering the relationship between a small quantity of historical and the current context.

Rationale- Considering the evolution of measurement perspectives enriched the understanding of how racial disparities in policing have developed and evolved.

Feedback Sheet: Surveys, Questionnaires, Interviews

Analysis of modifications made following submission

Inclusion of closed-ended questions- Based on the feedback,  closed-ended questions were included in the research, leading to having both open and closed-ended questions.

Rationale- Compared to open-ended questions, closed-ended questions take less time to answer. Given that they are two-answer yes/no questions, respondents would be inclined to answer them, increasing the response rate. Besides, Mazhar et al. (2021) argue that it is easy to analyze the data and compute overall sentiment in closed-ended questions. Further, participants do not have to overthink their responses since the questions are easy to understand and answer.

Using a multi-pronged data collection approach- The feedback suggested using multiple methods such as phone interviews, online platforms, social media, and in-person interactions to administer the surveys.

Rationale- Using multiple methods to collect data will eliminate extra costs that would have been incurred if the data collection solely depended on physical interviews. Secondly, online interviews are flexible since they can be contacted at any time, leading to increased participation (Mazhar et al., 2021). Further, online data collection methods eliminate geographic barriers and increase the researcher’s safety.

Naturally Arrived At Modifications

Use of thematic analysis to analyze open-ended questions- Following the research project development, thematic analysis was opted for instead of content analysis to analyze the qualitative data (open-ended questions).

Rationale- Thematic analysis helps researchers to identify the aspects that respondents talk about commonly or in depth. The analysis also helps researchers understand the way those aspects are linked. The thematic analysis identifies patterns and themes, making it easier to analyze data. Also, it is easy to analyze data using themes and patterns; hence, no training is required- this approach can be conducted unsupervised. Further, there are many ways in which data sets from thematic analysis can be interpreted.