Areas high in collective efficacy – where residents know and trust one another and are willing to intervene to solve neighbourhood problems – tend to experience less crime. Policing is thought to be one antecedent to collective efficacy, but little empirical research has explored this question. Using three waves of survey data collected from London residents over three consecutive years, and multilevel Structural Equation Modelling, this study tested the impact of police visibility and police–community engagement on collective efficacy. We explored direct effects as well as indirect effects through trust in police. The findings showed levels of police visibility predicted trust in police. Trust in police fairness, in turn, predicted collective efficacy. There was a small indirect relationship between police visibility and collective efficacy, through trust in police fairness. In other words, police presence in neighbourhoods was associated with more positive views about officer behaviour, which in turn was associated with collective efficacy. The findings have important implications for policies designed to build stronger, more resilient communities.

集体效率高的地区——居民彼此了解和信任，并愿意干预解决邻里问题——往往会减少犯罪。警务被认为是集体效能的前身，但很少有实证研究探讨过这个问题。本研究使用连续三年从伦敦居民收集的三波调查数据和多层次结构方程模型，测试了警察可见性和警察社区参与对集体效能的影响。我们通过对警察的信任探讨了直接影响和间接影响。调查结果显示，警察的可见度水平预示着对警察的信任。反过来，对警察公平的信任预测了集体效能。有一个小的间接通过对警察公平的信任，警察知名度和集体效能之间的关系。换句话说，邻里警察的存在与对警官行为的更积极看法有关，而这反过来又与集体效能有关。这些发现对旨在建立更强大、更具弹性的社区的政策具有重要意义。