AUTHORS
Aviv & Weisburd (2016)
STUDY OBJECTIVE
Crime victims are a unique subgroup who evaluate the police and police legitimacy more harshly than those who have not been victimized. This could be explained by their victimization, and their special needs from and expectations of the police. Due to the importance of crime victims for the criminal justice system, the current study examines the mechanisms underlying differences in legitimacy evaluations of victims and non-victims. We focus on the two main antecedents of legitimacy: procedural justice and police performance.
EXPERIMENTAL INTERVENTION
Observational study that compares victims versus non-victims of crime.
MAIN RESULTS
1) Procedural justice operates similarly for victims and non-victims, but that police performance plays a much more important role as an precursor for victims.
2) These findings suggest that managing perceptions of police performance may be key to closing the gap in legitimacy evaluations between victims and non-victims.
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