How should police respond to homelessness? Results from a survey experiment in Portland, Oregon

ABSTRACT Recent years have seen increases in citizen complaints and legislation about homelessness. Police are often tasked with responding to these complaints and violations. This paper asks: What do people want the police to do when they encounter visible homelessness, and how are these preferences related to characteristics of observers and of individuals who are homeless? It presents findings from a survey experiment delivered to residents of Portland, Oregon, USA. Respondents were given a series of vignettes involving a hypothetical homeless man whose race (Black or White) and background characteristics (substance abuse, mental illness, combat veteran, or control) were randomly assigned. Respondents were then asked to endorse an aggressive (‘arrest’), therapeutic (‘help’), or hands-off (‘ignore’) response by police. Results reveal support for a therapeutic response to visible homelessness, though this was mediated somewhat by the race of the homeless person. The findings contribute to research on public perceptions of police actions.