Masking up and the role of the police

Abstract

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic placed many challenges on policing, from limiting officers' ability to interact with citizens to enforcing regulations to prevent the spread of the virus. One of those regulations, and the focus of the current study, is mask mandates.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of over 550 US adults recruited on Amazon MTurk, the current study examines factors that may influence citizen attitudes toward the police's role in mask enforcement, with a specific focus on perceptions of the police, political leanings, and views about COVID-19 and mask-wearing.FindingsThe authors find that when respondents believed COVID-19 was serious and a major public health threat, they were more likely to believe the police should enforce masks, regardless of attitudes about the police, political party affiliation or other demographics.Originality/valueThe enforcement of public health mandates, such as mask wearing, often result in arguments related to the infringement of rights and questions about the overall legality of enforcement. This often puts law enforcement in a difficult position regarding how such mandates should be enforced and whether it is the responsibility of the police. Additional policy implications are discussed.