BROWN POLICY REPORT
"Race, Gender, and Providence Courts"
by Darrell West
Director, Taubman Center for Public Policy
Brown University
August, 2000
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Overall Court Performance
Court Fairness and Process
Capitol Police at Entrance
Court Sheriffs
Court Clerks
Foreign Language Interpreters
Court Forms and Fees
Court Schedule
Summary of Excellent/Good Ratings
Question Wording and Responses
In this Brown Policy Report, I investigate racial and gender differences in attitudes towards the courts among people who used the Providence Superior Court, District Court, Family Court, and Workers' Compensation Court between March 9 and 13, 1998. For that week, everyone who passed through these courts was given a written questionnaire asking for views about the court system, fairness, personnel, and procedures.
In addition to handing out the questionnaire to people who visited these Providence courts, the questions were mailed to people who use the court, such as agency attorneys, social workers, members of the Bench/Bar committees, and organizations representing the trial lawyers and criminal defense lawyers. The questions were administered both in English and Spanish in order to cover non-English speakers.
Overall, 1,724 people completed the questionnaire and returned it for tabulation. Seven hundred seventy-one were male, 704 were female, and 249 did not answer the gender question. One thousand two hundred forty-two were white, 142 were non-white (71 African Americans, 59 Hispanics, and 12 Asian Americans), and 340 did not answer the race question. Statistical tests were used to determine the significance of differences between males and females as well as whites and non-whites.
Among the more important results of this research are the following:
1) there were important differences in judgments about overall court performance by race, but not gender. Whereas 57 percent of whites who answered the performance question gave the court excellent or good marks, only 42 percent of non-whites did, a 15 percentage point difference that was statistically significant. For gender, there was not a significant difference between the 57 percent of males and 53 percent of females who thought the court was doing an excellent or good job.
2) the biggest racial difference occurred in views about court fairness. Whereas 64 percent of whites felt the court process was fair, only 41 percent of non-whites felt that way, a difference of 23 percentage points. There was no significant difference in opinion about fairness based on gender.
3) Whites were more likely than non-whites to say the capitol police found at the court entrance were helpful and sensitive, but there was no significant difference in views about the courteousness of capitol police or in the views of men and women about the capitol police.
4) there were no significant differences for race or gender in views about how courteous, helpful, and sensitive were court sheriffs.
5) there were a number of significant differences by race and gender in evaluations of court clerks. Whites were more likely than non-whites to see clerks as courteous, helpful, sensitive, and being knowledgeable about court procedures. Men were more likely than men to find clerks courteous, helpful, and sensitive.
6) court-employed foreign language interpreters were seen as more adequate by men than women, and more available by whites than non-whites.
7) there were no significant differences by race in judgments about court forms and fees, but women were more likely than men to see court filing and copying fees as reasonable.
8) Whites were more likely than non-whites to say the court started promptly and judges issued timely decisions. Men were more likely than women to say the court started promptly and hearings were held promptly.
In order to determine how users felt about the court, we asked, "how would you rate the overall job being done by the court you are visiting today?" Whites were more likely than non-whites to rate court performance positively. Whereas 57 percent of whites viewed the court as excellent or good, only 42 percent of non-whites felt that way (see Table 1). This difference of 15 percentage points was statistically significant.
There was no significant difference in views by gender. Although males were a little more likely to rate the courts excellent or good (57 percent) compared to females (53 percent), this difference was not statistically significant.
Table 1 Overall Court Job Performance by Race and Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Race White
9
48
32
11
Yes
Non-White
6
36
44
14
Sex Male
9
48
31
13
No
Female
8
45
34
12
The largest differences based on race occurred in regard to beliefs about the fairness of court process. While 64 percent of whites rated fairness as excellent or good, only 41 percent of non-whites felt that way (see Table 2). This difference of 23 percentage points was statistically significant. Whites also were more likely than non-whites to praise the dignity of court process and to feel that court processes were clearly explained. There was no gender gap in views about court fairness and process, as shown in Table 3.
Table 2 Evaluations of Court Fairness and Process by Race Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Fairness of Court Process White
19
45
26
10
Yes
Non-White
10
31
39
20
Dignity of Court Process White
20
45
25
10
Yes
Non-White
11
33
40
17
Court Process Clearly Explained White
21
46
24
8
Yes
Non-White
15
34
38
14
Table 3 Evaluations of Court Fairness and Process by Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Fairness of Court Process Male
18
45
26
11
No
Female
16
43
28
13
Dignity of Court Process Male
20
45
26
10
No
Female
18
42
28
11
Court Process Clearly Explained Male
20
45
25
10
No
Female
22
45
25
8
Court users also were asked to rate characteristics of capitol police located at the entrance to the court. As shown in Tables 4 and 5, there were no significant racial differences in views about capitol police courteousness or in gender differences for courteousness, helpfulness, or sensitivity.
However, there was a race gap in impressions about the helpfulness and sensitivity of the capitol police. Eighty-two percent of whites rated the helpfulness of the capitol police as excellent or good, while 77 percent of non-whites felt that way. In terms of sensitivity, 75 percent of whites rated the capitol police as excellent or good, compared to 68 percent of non-whites.
Table 4 Evaluation of Capitol Police at Entrance by Race Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Courteousness White
37
47
13
3
No
Non-White
30
47
14
8
Helpfulness White
36
46
14
4
Yes
Non-White
28
49
16
6
Sensitivity White
30
45
20
6
Yes
Non-White
22
46
22
9
Table 5 Evaluations of Capitol Police at Entrance by Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Courteousness Male
35
46
15
4
No
Female
36
47
13
4
Helpfulness Male
33
47
15
4
No
Female
35
47
14
3
Sensitivity Male
27
45
21
7
No
Female
29
45
20
6
The only category of court personnel for whom there were no significant differences based on race or gender were the court sheriffs. When asked about the courteousness, helpfulness, or sensitivity of sheriffs, whites and non-whites as well as men and women showed similar kinds of evaluations (see Tables 6 and 7).
Table 6 Evaluations of Court Sheriffs by Race Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Courteousness White
32
43
18
6
No
Non-White
30
40
16
14
Helpfulness White
32
43
19
6
No
Non-White
29
43
14
15
Sensitivity White
28
40
23
9
No
Non-White
26
38
16
21
Table 7 Evaluations of Court Sheriffs by Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Courteousness Male
33
42
18
7
No
Female
30
44
18
8
Helpfulness Male
32
43
18
7
No
Female
30
43
19
7
Sensitivity Male
28
39
22
11
No
Female
27
39
24
10
The category of court personnel showing the most consistent racial and gender differences were court clerks. As shown on Table 8, there were significant differences by race in every category of performance asked (courteousness, helpfulness, sensitivity, knowledge of court procedures, and office hours). For example, 74 percent of whites felt court clerks were courteous, while only 62 percent of non-whites felt that way. And while 75 percent of whites judged clerks to be helpful, only 60 percent of non-whites reported the clerks were helpful. In regard to gender, there were significant differences in three (courteousness, helpfulness, and sensitivity) of the five areas probed (see Table 9).
Table 8 Evaluations of Court Clerks by Race Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Courteousness White
32
42
18
8
Yes
Non-White
22
40
27
12
Helpfulness White
33
42
18
7
Yes
Non-White
22
38
30
10
Sensitivity White
30
38
22
9
Yes
Non-White
19
36
32
13
Knowledge of court procedures White
30
48
17
5
Yes
Non-White
21
47
19
12
Office Hours White
16
48
26
10
Yes
Non-White
10
38
30
21
Table 9 Evaluations of Court Clerks by Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Courteousness Male
33
41
18
8
Yes
Female
27
43
20
10
Helpfulness Male
34
42
18
7
Yes
Female
27
42
21
10
Sensitivity Male
30
38
23
9
Yes
Female
25
39
24
12
Knowledge of Court Procedures Male
29
47
18
5
No
Female
26
49
18
7
Office Hours Male
13
48
28
11
No
Female
17
48
25
10
Foreign language interpreters employed by the court were seen as more available among whites than non-whites, but more adequate by males than females (see Table 10). Forty-four percent of whites rated the availability of interpreters as excellent or good, compared to 26 percent of non-whites. This difference was statistically significant. When asked about the adequacy of foreign language interpreters, men (50 percent) were more likely to give a positive evaluation than women (45 percent).
Table 10 Evaluations of Court-Employed Foreign Language Interpreters by Race and Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Adequacy of Interpreters White
15
37
27
22
No
Non-White
11
35
20
35
Availability of Interpreters White
11
33
28
28
Yes
Non-White
5
21
40
33
Adequacy of Interpreters White
16
34
29
21
Yes
Non-White
10
35
25
29
Availability of Interpreters White
11
33
29
27
No
Non-White
9
30
27
34
There were no racial differences in judgements about court forms and fees, but some gender differences, mainly in regard to the reasonableness of court filing and copying fees. Women (48 percent) were more likely to rate the reasonableness of court filing fees as excellent or good, compared to men (36 percent). Women also were more likely to rate the reasonableness of copying fees as excellent or good, compared to men.
Table 11 Evaluations of Court Forms and Fees by Race Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Understandability of Forms White
13
52
28
6
No
Non-White
13
45
29
13
Assistance in Completing Forms White
13
47
28
13
No
Non-White
9
44
29
18
Reasonableness of Filing Fees White
8
33
35
24
No
Non-White
6
38
34
21
Reasonableness of Copying Fees White
9
40
34
16
No
Non-White
9
42
29
19
Table 12 Evaluations of Court Forms and Fees by Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Understandability of Forms Male
13
53
26
8
No
Female
12
49
32
7
Assistance in Completing Forms Male
11
50
27
12
No
Female
13
41
31
15
Reasonableness of Filing Fees Male
8
28
35
29
Yes
Female
8
40
35
18
Reasonableness of Copying Fees Male
9
37
34
20
Yes
Female
9
44
34
14
There were significant racial differences in views about prompt starts to court sessions. As shown in Table 13, whites (52 percent) were more likely to rate prompt starting as excellent or good, compared to non-whites (39 percent). Whites also were more likely to rate judges' decision as being timely (57 percent) compared to non-whites (40 percent). Furthermore, there was a gender gap in views about prompt hearings, with women being slightly less likely to feel there were prompt hearings than men.
Table 13 Evaluations of Court Scheduling by Race Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Reliability of Schedule White
11
40
29
20
No
Non-White
9
30
37
24
Prompt Start White
13
39
28
20
Yes
Non-White
11
28
36
24
Prompt Hearing White
8
29
32
31
No
Non-White
5
23
40
31
Prompt Resolution White
8
31
34
26
No
Non-White
6
26
36
32
Timeliness of Judges' Decisions White
13
44
30
13
Yes
Non-White
11
29
37
24
Table 14 Evaluations of Court Scheduling by Gender Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Significant Diff
Reliability of Schedule Male
9
40
31
20
No
Female
12
38
28
22
Prompt Start Male
12
40
28
20
No
Female
13
36
29
21
Prompt Hearing Male
8
28
35
28
Yes
Female
8
25
32
36
Prompt Resolution Male
8
33
34
26
No
Female
8
27
36
29
Timeliness of Judges' Decisions Male
13
43
31
14
No
Female
14
41
31
15
Summary of Excellent/Good Ratings
Table 15 combines excellent and good ratings for each demographic group for court performance, fairness, personnel, and process. Overall, the biggest racial gaps occur with the fairness of court process (a 23 percentage point difference) and overall court job performance (15 percentage points between whites and non-whites). In regard to gender, other than in ratings of court fees, the biggest differences occurred in regard to the helpfulness of clerks (76 percent for men and 69 percent for women) and assistance in completing forms (61 percent for men and 54 percent for women).
Table 15 Summary of Excellent/Good Ratings by Race and Gender Whites
Non-Whites
Males
Females
Overall court job performance 57%
42%
57%
53%
Capitol police courteousness 84
77
81
83
Capitol police helpfulness 82
77
80
82
Capitol police sensitivity 85
68
72
74
Sheriffs courteousness 75
70
75
74
Sheriffs helpfulness 75
72
75
73
Sheriffs sensitivity 68
64
67
66
Clerks courteousness 74
62
74
70
Clerks helpfulness 75
60
76
69
Clerks sensitivity 68
55
68
64
Clerks knowledge 78
68
76
75
Clerks office hours of service 64
48
61
65
Adequacy of interpreters 52
46
50
45
Availability of interpreters 44
26
44
39
Forms understandability 65
58
66
61
Assistance in completing forms 60
53
61
54
Reasonableness of filing fees 41
44
36
48
Reasonableness of copying fees 49
51
46
53
Reliability of court schedule 51
39
49
50
Prompt start 52
39
52
49
Prompt hearing 37
28
36
33
Prompt resolution 39
32
41
35
Timeliness of judges' decisions 57
40
56
55
Fairness of court process 64
41
63
59
Dignity of court process 65
44
65
60
Court process explained 67
49
65
67
Question Wording and Responses
How would you rate the following characteristics of the personnel in the court you are visiting today?
a) courteousness of capital police at entrance: 33% excellent, 42% good, 13% only fair, 4% poor, 8% don't know, no answer
b) helpfulness of capital police at entrance: 30% excellent, 40% good, 13% only fair, 4% poor, 13% don't know, no answer
c) sensitivity of capital police at entrance: 25% excellent, 38% good, 18% only fair, 5% poor, 14% don't know, no answer
d) courteousness of courtroom sheriffs: 28% excellent, 38% good, 16% only fair, 6% poor, 12% don't know, no answer
e) helpfulness of courtroom sheriffs: 28% excellent, 38% good, 16% only fair, 6% poor, 12% don't know, no answer
f) sensitivity of courtroom sheriffs: 24% excellent, 33% good, 19% only fair, 9% poor, 15% don't know, no answer
g) courteousness of clerks' office staff: 27% excellent, 37% good, 17% only fair, 8% poor, 11% don't know, no answer
h) helpfulness of clerks' office staff: 27% excellent, 36% good, 17% only fair, 7% poor, 13% don't know, no answer
i) sensitivity of clerks' office staff: 24% excellent, 32% good, 20% only fair, 9% poor, 15% don't know, no answer
j) knowledge of court procedures by clerks' office staff: 24% excellent, 39% good, 14% only fair, 5% poor, 18% don't know, no answer
k) adequacy of court-employed, foreign language interpreters: 6% excellent, 15% good, 12% only fair, 11% poor, 56% don't know, no answer
How would you rate the following processes in the court you are visiting today?
a) understandability of court forms (clear and simple language): 11% excellent, 39% good, 22% only fair, 6% poor, 22% don't know, no answer
b) assistance in completing forms: 8% excellent, 27% good, 17% only fair, 8% poor, 40% don't know, no answer
c) reasonableness of court filing fees: 5% excellent, 20% good, 19% only fair, 14% poor, 42% don't know, no answer
d) reasonableness of copying fees: 6% excellent, 22% good, 18% only fair, 10% poor, 44% don't know, no answer
e) reliability of court schedule (case heard on date scheduled): 8% excellent, 29% good, 22% only fair, 16% poor, 25% don't know, no answer
f) prompt start for court sessions: 11% excellent, 32% good, 24% only fair, 17% poor, 17% don't know, no answer
g) prompt hearing of your case (no waiting around): 6% excellent, 21% good, 25% only fair, 24% poor, 24% don't know, no answer
h) prompt resolution/disposition of your case: 6% excellent, 22% good, 25% only fair, 19% poor, 28% don't know, no answer
i) timeliness of judges' decisions: 10% excellent, 31% good, 23% only fair, 11% poor, 25% don't know, no answer
j) court process clearly explained by judge/clerk): 16% excellent, 35% good, 20% only fair, 7% poor, 22% don't know, no answer
k) dignity of court process: 16% excellent, 36% good, 22% only fair, 9% poor, 17% don't know, no answer
l) fairness of court process: 14% excellent, 35% good, 22% only fair, 10% poor, 19% don't know, no answer
m) help for non-English speakers: 4% excellent, 13% good, 12% only fair, 13% poor, 58% don't know, no answer
n) clerks' office hours of service: 10% excellent, 32% good, 18% only fair, 8% poor, 32% don't know, no answer
How would you rate the overall job being done by the court you are visiting today? 8% excellent, 39% good, 27% only fair, 11% poor, 15% don't know, no answer