Probing the causal pathways between police procedural justice and perceptions of police legitimacy using experimental vignettes. ODISSEI LISS panel grant 2023 proposal

To what extent can a single interaction with the police shape how people feel about the police? How do we know for sure it’s about how police treat people, and not something else about the situation? And why might respectful treatment motivate people to comply? Previous research has focused primarily on the impact of extreme police behaviors in shaping public attitudes, with most studies conducted in the United States. This project aims to unpack how and why certain police behaviors during a routine interaction can change people’s attitudes in the Dutch context. Using vignettes that depict an interaction during a routine traffic stop, combined with additional follow-up questions and open-text answers, we will be able to evaluate both the effects and underlying mechanisms that connect police behavior and individual attitudes.