Assessing the Police Legitimacy Perceptions of an Invisible Minority: Sexual Orientation, Gender, and Procedural Injustice

• In Event: Outcomes of Police Treatment

Abstract

The difficult history between law enforcement and the LGBT community has negatively affected the confidence that LGBT persons have with the police. Persistent homophobic attitudes in police departments nationwide have led to the under-policing of LGBT citizens when victimized, but over-policing in places of leisure. This relationship is exacerbated when considering the interactive effect of gender on sexual orientation, undoubtedly impacting legitimacy perceptions due to perceived (and actual) procedural injustice. Using originally collected data from an LGBT festival in the southwest United States (N = 394), the current study examines the relationship between perceptions of fairness on police legitimacy, controlling for relevant demographics. Implications for theory and policy are discussed, with special attention given to contextualizing the findings within the current legitimacy crisis faced by American law enforcement.

Authors

• Megan E Verhagen, Arizona State University

• Lisa M Dario, Florida Atlantic University

• Henry F Fradella, Arizona State University

• Megan M Parry, University of Rhode Island

• Mary Elizabeth Hoyle, Arizona State University