Rural police officers and their attitudes and perceptions of protest events

Decades of studies have explored police and protest events. Unfortunately, there are few studies that specifically explore rural police officers and their experiences working during a protest event. This thesis explores rural police officer's experiences, attitudes and perceptions of protest events. Using grounded theory, I conducted semi-structured face-to-face interviews with thirteen active police officers in a rural area in Northern California. Using the theory of reification, the results provide more insight into rural police culture, characteristics, and their perceptions of police and protest tactics and strategies during a protest.