The purpose of this paper is to examine Chinese police officers’ attitudes toward the individuals they serve and protect. Using cross-sectional data collected from 271 police officers in a Chinese police university, this paper examines the effects of officers’ perceptions of citizens’ cooperation, compliance with laws, recognition and disrespect. Chinese police officers generally have mixed feelings about citizens. While officers negatively perceived citizens’ levels of cooperation, they believed the Chinese public were law-abiding and recognised the police for their work. Results further revealed a significant relationship between officers’ attitudes and their sense of effectiveness and behaviour. Future research should include more attitudinal dimensions, such as officers’ personality traits, and examine the relationship from a longitudinal perspective. Findings provide insights for Chinese administrators to reform the police with a focus on strengthening citizen–police relationships.
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