Independent Police Complaints Council Public Opinion Survey 2017Back

Research Background

Since 2013, Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) has been commissioning POP to conduct public opinion polls entitled “Independent Police Complaints Council Public Opinion Survey”. In 2017, IPCC commissioned POP for the fifth time to conduct this “Independent Police Complaints Council Public Opinion Survey 2017”. The objectives of the survey were to investigate the public knowledge and perception of IPCC after the incorporation, to understand the expectation of the public towards IPCC so as to shape a better IPCC, as well as to identify the direction of IPCC’s publicity initiatives in future. This was also the first time that a focus group study was carried out in addition to the telephone survey to collect more in-depth and comprehensive opinions and suggestions from citizens.

The research instrument used in this study was designed entirely by the POP Team after consulting the IPCC. Fieldwork operations and data analysis were also conducted independently by the POP Team, without interference from any outside parties. In other words, POP was given full autonomy to design and conduct the survey, and POP would take full responsibility for all the findings reported herewith.

Research Team Members

Research Directors :	Project Manager :	Project Executive :	Data Analyst :
CHUNG Ting-Yiu Robert and PANG Ka-Lai Karie	LEE Wing-Yi Winnie	CHU Cho-Leung Stanley	TAI Chit-Fai Edward

Contact Information

Telephone survey

Survey date	:	6 – 17 March 2017
Survey method	:	Random telephone survey conducted by real interviewers
Target population	:	Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong citizens aged 18 or above
Sampling method	:	Telephone numbers are randomly generated using known prefixes assigned to telecommunication services providers under the Numbering Plan provided by the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA). Invalid numbers are then eliminated according to computer and manual dialing records to produce the final sample. If more than one subject had been available, the one who had his/her birthday next was selected.
Sample size	:	1,010 successful cases
Response rate	:	70.7%
Standard error	:	Less than 1.6% (i.e. at 95% confidence level, the maximum sampling error of all percentages should be no more than +/-3.1 percentage points)

Focus group study

Number of focus groups	:	Two
Date and time	:	16 May 2017 (Tue) 7:15pm – 9:30pm 18 May 2017 (Thu) 7:15pm – 9:00pm
Venue	:	Focus Group Room, HKUPOP Office Room 706, 7/F, The Jockey Club Tower, Centennial Campus, The University of Hong Kong
Participants	:	10 in each group (all are Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong residents aged 18 or above recruited at the IPCC Public Opinion Survey 2017)
Moderators	:	Mr Stanley CHU (POP representative) Ms Ka Yu WONG (IPCC representative)

Research Design

Telephone survey

Telephone interviews were conducted by telephone interviewers under close supervision. All data were collected by interviewers using a Web-based Computer Assisted Telephone Interview (Web-CATI) system invented in-house by the research team, which allowed real-time data capture and consolidation. To ensure data quality, on top of on-site supervision and random checking, voice recording, screen capturing and camera surveillance were used to monitor the interviewers’ performance.

Telephone numbers were randomly generated using known prefixes assigned to telecommunication services providers under the Numbering Plan provided by the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA). Invalid numbers were then eliminated according to computer and manual dialing records to produce the final sample.

The target population of this survey was Hong Kong residents aged 18 or above who spoke Cantonese. After telephone contact was successfully established with a target household, one eligible person was selected using “next birthday rule” for the interview. Telephone interviews were conducted during the period of 6 to 17 March, 2017. A total of 1,010 Hong Kong residents of age 18 or above were successfully interviewed. The response rate of this survey was 70.7%, and the standard sampling error for percentages based on this sample was less than 1.6 percentage points. In other words, the sampling error for all percentages using the total sample was less than plus/minus 3.1 percentage points at 95% confidence level.

To ensure representativeness of the findings, the raw data collected have been rim-weighted according to provisional figures obtained from the Census and Statistics Department regarding the gender-age distribution of the Hong Kong population in 2016 mid-year and the educational attainment (highest level attended) distribution collected in the 2011 Census.

Focus group study

Two focus groups have been organized by POP in mid-May 2017. All participants were Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong residents aged 18 or above recruited at the IPCC Public Opinion Survey 2017 telephone survey which had been conducted earlier. Each group lasted for about two hours, with a total of 20 people participating in the two groups.

The focus groups were moderated by a POP representative, who asked for participants’ opinions according to the discussion guide. An IPCC representative was also present to answer participants’ questions on IPCC when needed and to clarify/explain the work of IPCC and the functioning of the two-tier police complaints system.

Questionnaire (pdf format only)

Telephone survey report (pdf format only)

Focus group study report (Chinese pdf format only)

Presentation slides (pdf format only)

Press Release prepared by Sponsor (pdf format only)