Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Police Legitimacy and Citizen Cooperation in China: Testing an Alternative Model

  • Published:
Asian Journal of Criminology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Past research has identified several mechanisms of promoting citizen cooperation with the police, with Tyler’s process-based policing model being one of the most frequently tested frameworks in this line of inquiry. Using data collected from a large sample of residents in a large Chinese city, this study assesses an alternative model of Tyler’s work proposed by Tankebe (2013), positing that police legitimacy, embodied in four aspects of procedural justice, distributive justice, effectiveness, and lawfulness, affects people’s obligation to obey the police, which further influences their cooperation with the police. Results from second-order confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling analysis suggested that Tankebe’s work is supported by the Chinese data. Implications for future research and policy are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Akinlabi, O. (2017). Young people, procedural justice and police legitimacy in Nigeria. Policing and Society, 27, 419–438.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boateng, F. (2017). Institutional trust and performance: a study of the police in Ghana. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 51, 164–182 Online first at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0004865817712335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bottoms, A., & Tankebe, J. (2012). Beyond procedural justice: a dialogue approach to legitimacy in criminal justice. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 102, 119–170.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cao, L. (2007). Returning to normality: anomie and crime in China. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 51, 40–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carrabine, E. (2005). Prison riots, social order and the problem of legitimacy. British Journal of Criminology, 45, 896–913.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Easton, D. (1975). A re-assessment of the concept of political support. British Journal of Political Science, 5, 444–445.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gau, J. (2011). The convergent and discriminant validity of procedural justice and police legitimacy: an empirical test of core theoretical propositions. Journal of Criminal Justice, 39, 489–498.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gau, J. (2014). Procedural justice and police legitimacy: a test of measurement and structure. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 39, 187–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hinds, L., & Murphy, K. (2007). Public satisfaction with police: using procedural justice to improve police legitimacy. Australia and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 40, 27–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hough M., Jackson, J., & Bradford, B. (2012). Trust in justice and the legitimacy of legal authorities: topline findings from a comparative European study. Accessed on December 10, 2016 at http://www.fiduciaproject.eu/publications.

  • Huq, A., Jackson, J., & Trinkner, R. (2017). Legitimating practices: revisiting the predicates of police legitimacy. British Journal of Criminology, 57, 1101–1122.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, J., Bradford, B., Hough, M., Myhill, A., Quinton, P., & Tyler, T. (2012). Why do people comply with the law? Legitimacy and the influence of legal institutions. British Journal of Criminology, 52, 1051–1071.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jiang, S., Wu, Y., & Wang, J. (2013). Citizens’ obligation to obey the law: an empirical study of Guangzhou, China. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 57, 495–518.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jonathan-Zamir, T., & Weisburd, D. (2013). The effects of security threats on antecedents of police legitimacy: findings from a quasi-experiment in Israel. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 50, 3–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karstedt, S. (2013). Trusting authorities: legitimacy, trust, and collaboration in non-democratic regimes. In J. Tankebe & A. Liebling (Eds.), Legitimacy and criminal justice: an international exploration (pp. 127–156). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Kochel, T., Parks, R., & Mastrofski, S. (2013). Examining police effectiveness as a precursor to legitimacy and cooperation with police. Justice Quarterly, 30, 895–925.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lai, Y., Cao, L., & Zhao, J. (2010). The impact of political entity on confidence in legal authorities: a comparison between China and Taiwan. Journal of Criminal Justice, 38, 934–841.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Legal Daily. (2012). A report on mass incidents in 2012. Accessed July 31, 2014 from http://www.legaldaily.com.cn/The_analysis_of_public_opinion/content/2012-12/27/content_4092138.htm.

  • Michelson, E., & Read, B. (2011). Public attitudes toward official justice in Beijing and rural China. In M. Woo, M. Gallagher, & M. Goldman (Eds.), Chinese justice: civil dispute resolution in contemporary China (pp. 169–203). Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, K. (2005). Regulating more effectively: the relationship between procedural justice, legitimacy, and tax non-compliance. Journal of Law and Society, 32, 562–589.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, K., & Cherney, A. (2012). Fostering cooperation with the police: how do ethnic minorities in Australia respond to procedural justice-based policing? Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 44, 235–257.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nivette, A., & Akoensi, T. (2017). Determinants of satisfaction with police in a developing country: a randomized vignette study. Policing and Society. Online first at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10439463.2017.1380643.

  • O’Brien, K., & Li, L. (2006). Rightful resistance in rural China. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Perry, E. (2010). Popular protest: playing by the rules. In J. Fewsmith (Ed.), China today, China tomorrow: domestic politics, economy, and society (pp. 11–28). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reisig, M., & Lloyd, C. (2009). Procedural justice, police legitimacy and helping the police fight crime: results from a survey of Jamaican adolescents. Police Quarterly, 12, 42–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reisig, M., Bratton, J., & Gertz, M. (2007). The construct validity and refinement of process-based policing measures. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 34, 1005–1028.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reisig, M., Tankebe, J., & Mesko, G. (2014). Compliance with the law in Slovenia: the role of procedural justice and police legitimacy. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 20, 269–276.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seligson, M. (1980). Trust, efficacy and modes of political participation: a study of Costa Rican peasants. British Journal of Political Science, 10, 75–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SINA (2004). More than 7,000 officers were investigated: Chines police aggressively enforce disciplinary problems. Available online at http://news.sina.com.cn/o/2004-02-24/09061881893s.shtml.

  • Skogan, W., & Meares, T. (2004). Lawful policing. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 593(1), 66–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, D. (2007). The foundations of legitimacy. In T. Tyler (Ed.), Legitimacy and criminal justice: international perspectives (pp. 30–58). New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sun, I., & Wu, Y. (2010). Chinese policing in a time of transition, 1978-2008. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 26, 20–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun, I., Hu, R., & Wu, Y. (2012). Social capital, political participation, and public trust in police in urban China. Australia and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 45, 87–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun, I., Hu, R., Wong, D., He, X., & Li, J. (2013). One country, three populations: trust in police among migrants, villagers, and urbanites in China. Social Science Research, 42, 1737–1749.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun, I., Wu, Y., Hu, R., & Farmer, A. (2017). Procedural justice, legitimacy, and public cooperation with police: does western wisdom hold in China? Journal of Research on Crime and Delinquency, 54, 454–478.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sunshine, J., & Tyler, T. (2003). The role of procedural justice and legitimacy in shaping public support for policing. Law and Society Review, 37, 513–547.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tankebe, J. (2009). Public cooperation with the police in Ghana: does procedural fairness matter? Criminology, 47(4), 1265–1293.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tankebe, J. (2013). Viewing things differently: the dimensions of public perceptions of police legitimacy. Criminology, 51, 103–135.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tanner, M. (2004). China rethinks unrest. The Washington Quarterly, 27, 137–156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • The Economist Intelligence Unit (2013). Democracy index 2013: democracy in limbo. Available online at http://www.ihsnews.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Democracy_Index_2013_WEB-2.pdf.

  • The National Research Council. (2004). Fairness and effectiveness in policing: the evidence. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyler, T. (1990). Why people obey the law. New Haven: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyler, T., & Fagan, J. (2008). Legitimacy and cooperation: why do people help the police fight crime in their communities. Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law, 6, 231.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyler, T., & Huo, Y. (2002). Trust in the law. New York: Russell Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang, L. (2007). An analysis of police occupational crime. Zhengzhou: Zhengzhou University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang, H. (2010). Research and analysis on police’s current health and exercise conditions. Journal of the Guizhou Police College, 1, 109–113.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, Y. (2014). The impact of media on trust in legal authorities in China and Taiwan. Asian Journal of Criminology, 9, 85–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu, Y., & Sun, I. (2009). Chinese trust in police: the case of China. Police Quarterly, 12, 170–191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu, Y., Jiang, S., & Lambert, E. (2010). Citizen support for community policing in China. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management, 34, 286–303.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, L., Messner, S., & Liu, J. (2007). An exploration of the determinants of reporting crime to the police in the City of Tianjin, China. Criminology, 45, 959–984.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, 19716, USA

    Ivan Y. Sun & Luye Li

  2. Department of Criminal Justice, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48202, USA

    Yuning Wu

  3. Department of Sociology and Social Work, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China

    Rong Hu

Authors
  1. Ivan Y. Sun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Luye Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Yuning Wu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Rong Hu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ivan Y. Sun.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Sun, I.Y., Li, L., Wu, Y. et al. Police Legitimacy and Citizen Cooperation in China: Testing an Alternative Model. Asian J Criminol 13, 275–291 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11417-018-9270-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11417-018-9270-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation