Contrasting the role of trustworthy versus fair supervisors in organizational justice models of policing outcomes

Abstract

PurposeThough contemporary police organizational behavior scholars often limit their measure of organizational justice to just supervisory procedural justice, this study examines how the additional dimensions of supervisor trustworthiness and peer procedural justice compare with procedural justice in their role shaping police outcomes.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 638 police officers in Zagreb, Croatia, was used to regress three separate dimensions of organizational justice on key officer attitudes toward their duties.FindingsThe authors found that supervisor trustworthiness and peer procedural justice were the dominant predictors of officers' rule compliance and trust in the public.Originality/valueThe findings suggest that police scholars and practitioners seeking to better understand the role of officer judgments on resisting agency reform should consider the precedent in corporate behavior research to specifically test the unique roles of multiple components of police organizational behavior on policing outcomes.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Criminology and Criminal Justice

“…Studies indicate that procedural justice -how individuals perceive they are treated by authorities -is crucial both externally and in interactions between the police and the public (e.g., Meško & Tankebe, 2015;Peacock et al, 2021;Sunshine & Tyler, 2003) and internally, within police organisations (e.g., Peacock et al, 2023;Reisig et al, 2012;Wolfe & Lawson, 2020). The legitimacy of policing is also vital.…”

Guest editorial: Reexamining the police culture

“…Donner and Maskály, 2023), that the internal environment matters (e.g. Cochran and Worden, 2023; Hacin and Meško, 2022; Nam, 2023; Orosco and Gaub, 2023; Paoline and Gau, 2023; Patterson and King, 2023; Peacock et al ., 2023a; Wu et al ., 2023), and that external environments matter as well (e.g. Amagnya, 2023; Peacock et al ., 2023b; Wu, 2023; Wu et al ., 2023).…”

“…A lack of compliance with organizational rules-that is, a rule-violating behavior that constitutes police misconduct-is one of the three policing outcomes assessed in the study by Peacock et al (2023a). In this research project, Peacock et al (2023a) explore the potential effects of a peer culture and a supervisory culture on the views of Croatian police officers.…”

“…A lack of compliance with organizational rules-that is, a rule-violating behavior that constitutes police misconduct-is one of the three policing outcomes assessed in the study by Peacock et al (2023a). In this research project, Peacock et al (2023a) explore the potential effects of a peer culture and a supervisory culture on the views of Croatian police officers. A relatively surprising conclusion, keeping in mind a long line of research demonstrating that perceptions of peers' views are critical for the police officers' own attitudes toward police integrity (e.g.…”