Reducing Officers’ Resistance to Evidence-Based Policing: Does Police Self-Legitimacy Matter?

• In Event: Organizational Dynamics and Institutional Reform

Abstract

Recent years have seen growing attention to police officers’ resistance or receptivity to evidence-based policing (EBP). Simultaneously, amid a global crisis of police legitimacy, scholarly interest in police self-legitimacy has increased. Using survey data from police officers in South Korea, this study examines the role of police self-legitimacy in reducing resistance to EBP, as well as its mediating role in the relationship between organizational factors and resistance. Findings reveal a significant association between self-legitimacy and resistance to EBP. Moreover, self-legitimacy mediates the relationship between organizational factors—such as cynicism toward organizational change and supervisor support—and resistance. Thus, police agencies and leaders seeking to reduce resistance to EBP should implement initiatives that strengthen officers’ confidence in their authority. This can be achieved by fostering a positive organizational climate—for example, by reducing officers’ skepticism about the agency’s ability to drive positive change and ensuring they consistently receive supportive supervision and recognition.

Author

• Kiseong Kuen, Griffith University