Satisfaction with the Police in South Africa: Perspectives of University Students

Abstract The present study explores satisfaction with the police among university students and factors that contribute to their perceptions. Citizens’ satisfaction with the police is an important element of public perceptions of the police. Existing scholarly literature has extensively examined this subject, albeit with a predominant emphasis on the broader population. As a result, there is a dearth of research on the perspectives of specific population segments, such as the youth more generally and university students in particular. Such a gap hinders the ability to make broad generalisations about research on satisfaction with the police and their applicability to those sub-groups of the population. This is particularly important as the youth, especially university students, usually have frequent and acrimonious encounters and interactions with law enforcement agencies. Addressing this gap, the current study examines the determinants of university students’ satisfaction with the police in South Africa through a cross-sectional survey. The results suggest that while participants highly value procedural fairness when assessing their satisfaction with the police, their primary concern is the efficacy of the police in reducing crime rates and ensuring community safety. The paper concludes by discussing the relevance of the findings for establishing and strengthening effective police-student relations in South Africa and beyond.