The Consequences of Police Brutality on Psychological Well-Being and Collective Action

Abstract

Over the last year, police killings of unarmed Black men and women have led to worldwide protests against police brutality and anti-Black racism in the justice system. Research on racism suggests that being the target of racial discrimination can have averse psychological consequences, but there is a lack of research on the psychological effects of experiencing police brutality. The goal of this study is to investigate whether exposure to police brutality affects the self-esteem of Black students. I will also examine whether exposure to police brutality affects the willingness of Black students to participate in collective action as past research indicates that perceiving discrimination is associated with greater support for political action. One group of participants will read an article describing a situation involving police brutality against a Black victim while another group will read an identical article but with a non-Black victim. After reading the articles, participants will complete measures of stated self-esteem, willingness to participate in collective action, and support for the Black Lives Matter movement. I hypothesize that participants who read an article about police brutality with a Black victim will have lower self-esteem and a greater willingness to participate in collective action than participants who read the article about police brutality with a non-Black victim. If the results support this hypothesis, it will suggest that exposure to police violence has a negative effect on the mental health of Black individuals. It will also provide further evidence for the perception that injustice against the ingroup can lead to greater support for political action.