In the eyes of the law: Associations among fear of negative evaluation, race, and feelings of safety in the presence of police officers

Police officers are a community resource tasked with keeping citizens safe. Some individuals, however, particularly those from groups that have historically experienced mistreatment at the hands of police officers, are disproportionately likely to perceive interactions with police, even those that are ostensibly benign or helpful, as threatening. We know little about whether psychological characteristics, such as fear of negative evaluation (FNE), which is also associated with heightened perception of threats from others, may amplify or attenuate perceptions of safety in the presence of the police. We used linear multiple regression to test the hypothesis that perceptions of safety in the presence of same- and different- race police officers would be lower among members of a group with heightened perceptions of police mistreatment (African Americans), particularly those who also endorse high levels of FNE, than among European Americans, regardless of their levels of FNE. Our findings indicate that the interaction between participant race and FNE significantly predicted safety feelings in the presence of police officers, particularly those from a racial outgroup. How one views interactions with police may influence whether or how often a citizen seeks police protection as well as the nature of those interactions.