Understanding through Experience: Utilizing a Use of Force Simulator to Examine Community Members’ Perceptions of Police

Muneeba Azam

Advisor: Charlotte Gill, PhD, Department of Criminology, Law and Society

Committee Members: Sue-Ming Yang, Cynthia Lum, Justin Ramsdell

Online Location, #Online
March 27, 2026, 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Abstract:

Public evaluations of police use of force play a central role in shaping police legitimacy and police-community relations. However, most community members form opinions about use of force without direct exposure to the conditions under which officers make rapid decisions, particularly in situations involving uncertainty and stress. Existing research has largely relied on surveys, vignettes, or video-based exposure, leaving a limited understanding of how experiential exposure to police decision-making shapes public perceptions of police use of force.

This dissertation examines whether participation in an immersive use of force simulation influences community members’ tolerance and evaluation of police use of force. Using a mixed-methods, repeated-measures design, participants assessed police use of force across three scenarios – justified, ambiguous, and unjustified – both before and after experiencing a high-fidelity use of force simulator. Quantitative analyses assessed changes in participants’ general tolerance and perceptions of the justification and magnitude of the use of force across scenarios, while qualitative debrief interviews captured how participants interpreted and reflected on the simulation experience.

The findings indicate that simulation exposure did not produce uniform shifts in support for police use of force. Instead, responses varied across scenario types and individuals. The simulation consistently increased participants’ understanding of the uncertainty, perceptual limitations, and time constraints that officers face, particularly in ambiguous situations. However, increased understanding did not always translate into moral acceptance of the use of force. While some participants recalibrated their evaluations, others maintained firm boundaries regarding what constituted acceptable conduct.  

Overall, this study demonstrates that experiential exposure does not simply change attitudes in a linear way but rather deepens the complexity of how the public interprets and judges police use of force. By introducing experiential exposure into the study of public perceptions of police use of force, this study advances existing scholarship and offers new insights into how tolerance perceptions are formed. More broadly, the findings have important implications for legitimacy. The results suggest that legitimacy may be strengthened by acknowledging the inherent difficulty of police decision-making, even in the absence of favorable views of force. However, legitimacy-building efforts cannot solely rely on explaining these challenges; they must also engage with the moral boundaries that define the acceptable use of force.