Legitimacy in Law Enforcement: Society's Perception and Police Effectiveness

Legitimacy and Cooperation: How Society’s Perception Impacts Police Effectiveness

Reana Mohamed

California University of Pennsylvania

Abstract

As past research has implied, legitimacy aids and advocates for compliance with the law. Due to recent issues of police brutality and police shootings, some of society’s trust and confidence in law enforcement has decreased. The primary role of police officers is to both serve their communities in times of crisis and protect the members of the community. As Tyler and colleagues have shown, legitimacy – typically operationalized as felt obligation to obey authorizes and trust and confidence in the relevant institutions – plays an important role in achieving such compliance. The study

(Tyler & Fagan, 2008). Legitimacy, therefore, reflects an important social value, distinct from self-interest, to which social authorities can appeal to gain public deference and cooperation. Previous research has implied that when authorities are viewed as legitimate, they [authorities] are better able to motivate people to comply with the law. In addition to motiving people to comply with the law, it also promotes the public’s cooperation with the police, willingness to collaborate with the police, help seeking behavior and crime reporting practices in the USA (Fagan & Tyler, 2004, 2005; Lind & Tyler, 1988; Murphy, Hinds, & Flemming, 2008; Reisig, Bratton, & Gertz, 2008). Enhancing legitimacy also advances the goals of policing, which includes crime control effectiveness (Skogan & Frydl, 2004). As Kochel and colleagues (2013) point out understanding how voluntary cooperation and compliance can be promoted is essential to effective policing in a democratic environment (pp. 896). Previous research has also suggested that in societies such as the United States of America, where laws and cultural norms protect liberty and privacy, legal authorities rely on the public’s cooperation and acquiescence (Tyler et al,