Community trust is vital for effective policing, as well as supporting the safety and well-being of both officers and the community members they serve. At its core, community trust hinges on the relationship between police officers and community members.

The philosophy of community trust in policing can be traced back to 1829 in London, England, where the first modern police force was established by Sir Robert Peel. He emphasized community cooperation, ethical conduct, the importance of earning support from the public, and the notion that the police are members of the public in uniform.

Peel’s Nine Principles of Policing asserted that police earn public support by respecting community principles and that trust building is a consistent, community-centered component of the profession. When law enforcement aligns its practices with the values and needs of the community it serves, it begins to cultivate legitimacy. As modern police seek to enhance their legitimacy, Peel’s foundational ideas of community engagement and partnership with the public continue to guide efforts toward building a safer and more just society. That means responding to community members in a procedurally just way, recruiting officers who understand and align with a community policing philosophy, and exercising trauma-informed practices and collaborative problem-solving in crisis situations.

By revisiting and applying Peel’s enduring principles, agencies can work to properly measure community trust, ensuring that policing is not seen only as enforcement of laws but also as a collaborative effort improving the well-being and quality of life for community members and police alike. By addressing the Peelian principles, agencies can incorporate trust-building strategies into their mission, vision, and values and strengthen relationships within the communities they serve.

Measuring Community Trust

An initial step in building, improving, and maintaining community trust is measuring the public’s confidence in police and tailoring strategies to implement based on those insights. Several initiatives led by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), including the Trust Building Campaign, seek to enhance trust between police agencies and community members. The Trust Building Campaign Toolkit’s Measuring Community Trust resource, a first-of-its-kind publication, provides a framework for police leaders to approach this important work and outlines key considerations for how police agencies can measure community trust, including the following topics:

• • Essential Measures for Understanding Community Trust
  • Types of Measurement Tools and Sources to Data Gauge Community Trust
  • Using Surveys to Measure Community Trust
  • Considerations for Research Partnerships
  • Key Considerations for Measuring Community Trust
  • Key Terms for Data Analysis

The Measuring Community Trust resource was developed after careful review of 25 unique surveys conducted by community and police partnerships around the United States that implemented collaborative crime reduction initiatives as part of the Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation (BCJI) program. The BCJI Program is funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the Office of Justice Programs at the U.S. Department of Justice to support communities around the United States through grant funding to reduce crime, build partnerships, and enhance trust.

Exploring Research Partners

Assessing the community’s trust requires thoughtful planning, technical knowledge, and practical insight. For agencies without strong research capabilities, this process can be complex. In fact, most BCJI grantees that gathered data on community trust partnered with independent research experts to support their efforts.

Police agencies considering this type of research might benefit from collaborating with a research-focused partner. These can include nonprofits, private firms, or academic institutions. Agencies can expect a variety of benefits from these partnerships:

• • Specialized expertise: Research organizations bring valuable skills in designing surveys, conducting interviews, and analyzing results. Their methodological knowledge strengthens both the process and the findings.
  • Unbiased perspectives: An external partner lends credibility and impartiality to research. Rather than relying solely on internal resources, agencies can leverage third-party validation to reinforce the accuracy and reliability of their results.
  • Enhanced trust and openness: Collaborating with neutral third parties can increase community participation and confidence in the research.

Additionally, trust is not a one-size-fits-all concept. Communities differ in complexity, and each face unique challenges. By collaborating with organizations that specialize in areas like crime and violence, homelessness, substance use, or youth services, police demonstrate their understanding and commitment to partnering locally to increase effectiveness. More importantly, they show a willingness to adapt and work alongside experts to address specific issues. An example is the joint efforts between police and behavioral health providers. These collaborations can produce a more efficient crisis response, thus allowing police to develop a deeper, foundational understanding of the varied types of assistance needed in their communities.

The Impact of Effective Policing

When police successfully address violent and serious offenses, they not only lower crime rates but also foster a deeper sense of safety among community members. People begin to view the police as dedicated public safety professionals who demonstrate a sincere commitment to the safety of the neighborhoods they serve.

This perception plays a critical role in enhancing or eroding public trust. When community members feel their safety is prioritized and witness tangible improvements in daily life due to police efforts, confidence in law enforcement grows. Conversely, if community members perceive the police as ineffective in tackling violent and serious crimes, it can erode trust and lead to skepticism about their intentions, potentially diminishing community cooperation with their efforts.

Additionally, police agencies’ responses to disorder and quality-of-life issues may also impact community trust. Positive interactions, such as a fair and respectful approach to handling lower-level offenses or quality-of-life issues, can foster goodwill and a sense of partnership between police and the community. It is important to note that the community’s perception of fairness and attentiveness to these lower-level offenses play a crucial role in shaping confidence and trust in the police. By analyzing the BCJI Program, one can see this pattern exemplified in the grantee sites. In Florida, the Jacksonville and Miami-Dade County survey responses indicated that community trust was associated with factors such as response time, officer demeanor, professionalism at the scene of a call for service, and the presence and quality of a follow-up investigation after an incident. Results showed that police in these areas operate efficiently by promptly responding to incidents, conducting thorough investigations, and resolving issues quickly. Efficient policing shows that resources are being used effectively to serve the community, fostering greater public cooperation and contributing to lower crime levels.

Conclusion

Police agencies build community trust through intentional and ongoing engagement that is reflected in their vision, mission, values, and culture. This operational philosophy drives how the agency conducts itself at every level, making trust building a core part of daily operations. To build these strategies with purpose and intention, agencies can benefit immensely from measuring and understanding the current state of community trust. Meaningful and accurate data can serve as a powerful guide, identifying successes, revealing opportunities, and helping agencies foster their efforts where they can have the greatest impact. Police leaders can foster lasting relationships with their communities through Measuring Community Trust and other resources in the Trust Building Campaign Toolkit.d

Please cite as:

Carolyn Flammini, “Measuring What Matters,” IACP@Work, Police Chief 93, no. 2 (February 2026): 62–63.