Purpose

Police legitimacy presents a social value of the institution based on citizens' normative, moral and ethical feelings that they should voluntarily comply with and support the authority of the police. The present study focuses on residents' perceptions of police legitimacy in different settings in Slovenia.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on data from a survey of 1,022 citizens in Slovenia, this study examined the correlates of police legitimacy and differences in citizen perceptions of police legitimacy in urban, suburban and rural settings.

Findings

Multivariate statistical analyses showed that feelings of obligation to obey, trust in police, procedural justice, police effectiveness, relations with police officers and gender influence perceptions of police legitimacy. Significant differences between residents' perceptions of police legitimacy, obligation to obey, trust in police, procedural justice, police effectiveness and legal cynicism in urban, suburban and rural settings were also observed. In general, residents of rural areas were found to have more positive attitudes towards the police than those in urban and suburban settings.

Practical implications

The article is useful for police leaders and practitioners planning policies and training of police officers for democratic policing.

Social implications

Police legitimacy reflects the legitimacy of governance, as the police are the most visible representatives of the state authority. Therefore, police legitimacy is crucial for policing in urban, suburban and rural settings.

Originality/value

The study presents the first test of police legitimacy in a non-Western cultural environment based on a national sample of citizens, which enables the generalisation of concepts of legitimacy, and its correlates in a different cultural setting. The study also presents the first attempt to test and compare the effect of the settings (i.e. rural, suburban and urban) on variables influencing residents' perceptions of police legitimacy.

中文翻译：

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警察在城市、郊区和农村的合法性：斯洛文尼亚的一项研究

目的

警察合法性体现了一种基于公民自愿遵守和支持警察权威的规范、道德和伦理情感的机构社会价值。本研究的重点是斯洛文尼亚不同环境下居民对警察合法性的看法。

设计/方法论/途径

本研究利用对斯洛文尼亚 1,022 名公民的调查数据，探讨了警察合法性的相关性以及城市、郊区和农村地区公民对警察合法性看法的差异。

发现

多元统计分析表明，服从义务感、对警察的信任、程序公正、警察效能、与警察的关系和性别影响对警察合法性的看法。城市、郊区和农村居民对警察合法性、服从义务、对警察的信任、程序正义、警察效力和法律愤世嫉俗的看法也存在显着差异。总体而言，农村地区的居民对警察的态度比城市和郊区的居民更为积极。

实际影响

本文对于警察领导人和从业人员规划民主警务政策和培训警察很有用。

社会影响

警察的合法性体现了治理的合法性，警察是国家权力最明显的代表。因此，警察的合法性对于城市、郊区和农村地区的治安至关重要。

原创性/价值

该研究首次在非西方文化环境中基于全国公民样本对警察的合法性进行了检验，这使得合法性概念的泛化及其在不同文化环境中的关联成为可能。该研究还首次尝试测试和比较环境（即农村、郊区和城市）对影响居民对警察合法性看法的变量的影响。