The Psychological Influence of the Police Uniform

FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin,The, March, 2001 by Richard R. Johnson

In one experiment to test the power of the police uniform, a research assistant randomly approached pedestrians on a city street and ordered them to either pick up a paper bag, give a dime to another person, or step back from a bus stop. [14] The research assistant alternately wore casual clothes, a milk delivery uniform, or a grey, police-style uniform bearing a badge but lacking weapons. Only the police-style uniform resulted in a high rate of cooperation from citizens. Moreover, obedience to the police-style uniform usually continued even after the research assistant quickly walked away and did not watch to ensure compliance. [15]

Changes in the Uniform Style

Although the police uniform in general suggests the authority of the wearer, details about a police officer's uniform, such as the style of hat or the tailoring, can influence the level of authority emanating from the officer. Study participants in one experiment evaluated photographs of uniformed male and female police officers wearing nine different styles of head gear, including no hat at all. Even though psychological tests showed that participants perceived the officers to have authority under all of the circumstances, the type of hat varied the level of authority attributed to the officer. The traditional "bus driver" garrison cap and the "smoky bear" campaign hat conveyed more authority than the baseball cap or no hat at all. [16]

Many studies have addressed the influence of eliminating the paramilitary style of the police uniform. In one experiment, students viewed black and white drawings of three styles of police uniforms. Two of the uniforms represented a traditional paramilitary style, but lacked a duty belt or weapons. The third, nontraditional uniform consisted of a sport coat, or blazer, over slacks and a shirt with a tie. Although students ranked all three uniforms similarly for objectivity and trustworthiness, the blazer-style uniform ranked slightly higher for professionalism. [17] However, a similar experiment using color photos found the traditional, paramilitary style uniforms ranked as more honest, good, helpful, and competent than the blazer uniform. [18]

In 1969, the Menlo Park, California, Police Department discontinued their traditional navy blue, paramilitary-style uniforms and adopted a nontraditional uniform hoping to improve police-community relations. The new, nontraditional uniform consisted of a forest green blazer worn over black slacks, a white shirt, and a black tie. Officers displayed their badges on the blazer and concealed their weapons under the coat. [19] When other agencies heard about Menlo Park's attempt, over 400 other police departments in the United States also experimented with a blazer-style uniform. [20]

After wearing the new uniforms for 18 months, the Menlo Park police officers displayed fewer authoritarian characteristics on psychological tests when compared to officers in the surrounding jurisdictions. [21] Also, after wearing the uniforms for over a year, assaults on the Menlo Park police decreased by 30 percent and injuries to civilians by the police dropped 50 percent. Originally, the department thought the uniform changes resulted in these decreased rates, but other variables factored in at the same time. The number of college-educated officers in the department increased dramatically and the agency abolished its traditional autocratic management style during this same time period. [22]