Police Violence Exposure Among Young Adults in a U.S. National Probability Sample

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Sociology
• Criminology

Background:

• Police violence is a critical social determinant of health in the U.S.
• Data on prevalence and sociodemographic disparities from national samples are lacking.
• Understanding exposure is crucial for addressing health inequities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the past-year prevalence of police violence exposure among U.S. young adults.
• To identify sociodemographic disparities in exposure to police violence.
• To examine physical, sexual, psychological, and neglectful police violence.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional analysis of the National Survey of Poly-Victimization and Suicide Risk (N=1,077).
• Population-based probability sample of noninstitutionalized young adults (18-29 years).
• Logistic regression analysis using the Police Practices Inventory.

Main Results:

• Past-year police violence was widely reported: physical (4.0%), sexual (3.3%), psychological (8.5%), neglect (7.5%).
• Estimated 2.1 million young adults exposed to physical violence, 1.7 million to sexual violence.
• Black (non-Latine) race was the only consistent correlate of all four violence types in adjusted analyses.

Conclusions:

• Police violence affects a substantial minority of U.S. young adults.
• Ethnoracial disparities in police violence exposure generalize to a nationally representative sample.
• Findings underscore the need to address police violence as a public health issue and its impact on health equity.