‘Giving the right service to different people’: revisiting police legitimacy in the Covid-19 era

Charman, S., Newiss, G., Smith, P., Inkpen, R., Ilett, C., Ghaemmaghami, A. and Bennett, S. J. (2022) ‘Giving the right service to different people’: revisiting police legitimacy in the Covid-19 era. Policing and Society. pp. 1-18. ISSN 1477-2728

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Abstract

The suspension of certain civil liberties and the extension of police powers to combat the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic has provoked concerns about the longer-term implications of the pandemic on police legitimacy. Drawing upon pathways to police legitimacy identified within the literature, this paper examines police officers’ perceptions of the impacts on, and potential challenges to, police legitimacy arising from the pandemic. Qualitative interviews, video diaries and focus groups were conducted with police officers in one police force area in England, captured over a five month period in winter 2020/21. The experience of policing Covid-19 left many police officers concerned about the possible consequences for the relationship with the public. The paper cautions that any gains in public perceptions of procedural justice through using enforcement measures only as a last resort, may be offset by losses in other pathways to legitimacy. Expectations of enforcement and increased visibility plus prolonged changes to deployment practices have all heightened a focus on the more instrumental aspects of police legitimacy. Concerns were also voiced that the policing of Covid-19 has accentuated divisions in society, exacerbating the sense of multiple publics to police, with different and often competing expectations of – and beliefs about – the police. Enforcement falling more heavily within some groups and locations risks exacerbating long-standing concerns about distributive fairness. As agents of social control with unique powers to exercise force and compulsion, the pandemic will require the police to exercise continued vigilance on the means by which public consent and support are sustained.

Publication Type: Articles
Additional Information: Sarah Charman, Geoff Newiss, Paul Smith, Robert Inkpen, Camille Ilett, Aram Ghaemmaghami & Stephanie Bennett (2022): ‘Giving the right service to different people’: revisiting police legitimacy in the Covid-19 era, Policing and Society Published by Taylor & Francis Group Published online: 08 Sep 2022 with a CC BY NC ND license which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed or build on in any way. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Uncontrolled Keywords: Law, Sociology and Political Science, Covid-19, policing, legitimacy.
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
K Law > K5000 Criminal law and procedure
Divisions: Academic Areas > Institute of Education, Social and Life Sciences > Psychology
Related URLs:
SWORD Depositor: Publications Router Jisc
Depositing User: Publications Router Jisc
Date Deposited: 03 Oct 2022 12:30
Last Modified: 03 Oct 2022 12:31
URI: https://eprints.chi.ac.uk/id/eprint/6476

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