USC assisting with data collection, analysis
USC is partnering with the Columbia Police Department to gauge residents’ perceptions of the city’s safety. The effort is funded by a grant from the Smart Policing Initiative totaling nearly $300,000, CPD spokeswoman Jennifer Timmons said.
CPD has distributed 4,000 neighborhood surveys to people in various communities in order to gather data that they hope will help implement what they have called a “data-driven approach to policing.”
Between 600 and 700 have been physically returned so far, and criminal justice professor Scott Wolfe expects more to come in after reminder post cards and additional surveys are sent out.
Columbia residents who have not received a physical survey may take the survey on CPD’s website. Around 50 of those online surveys have been completed, according to Wolfe.
“Surveying the entire city would have been cost prohibitive,” Wolfe said. “The two-pronged survey approach ensures that we have adequate representation of the city and allows all willing citizens to voice their opinions to CPD regardless of whether they were part of the paper survey sample.”
The neighborhoods being examined by the survey include those closer to USC’s campus, like Shandon, as well as others throughout Columbia, like North Columbia’s Greenview neighborhood. The neighborhoods’ proximity to USC was not a factor when they were being chosen, Wolfe said.
The four-page survey asks about participants’ perception of their neighborhood’s crime rate, concerning everything from litter and noise issues to gangs and gunshots. It also asks about participants’ feelings towards police and the level of fear of crime in their neighborhood.
The data will be analyzed by USC for the police department in order to illustrate the issues facing Columbia residents and their satisfaction with police officers. The police department hopes to do a follow-up survey in the future, Wolfe said.
“CPD’s goal is to use multiple sources of information and data to better serve Columbia citizens and ensure a safe community,” Wolfe said.
While it has not been determined whether USC will utilize the data, Wolfe said it’s being considered.