Procedural justice theory (PJT) is now a widely utilised theoretical perspective in policing research that acknowledges the centrality of police ‘fairness’. Despite its widespread acceptance this paper asserts that there are conceptual limitations that emerge when applying the theory to the policing of crowd events. This paper contends that this problem with PJT is a…
Category: Trust in the police
South Korea: Calls for Police Innovation Trusted by Public
The ruling party-controlled National Assembly took the opportunity to highlight the importance of police “neutrality”ю “We will erase that disgraceful chapter of history and make sure that the police fully stand as a democratic force that protects the Constitution and the people through neutrality and democratic oversight”. Police should strive to become a “smart” force…
Julia Yesberg, Elise Sargeant, Liam Fenn, Kristina Murphy, Natasha Madon: Fairness in policing: how does internal procedural justice translate to external procedural justice?
A growing body of research has shown the experience of fair treatment within police organizations (internal procedural justice) leads to a greater willingness among police officers to treat members of the public fairly (external procedural justice). Despite recent scholarship in this area, the associations between internal and external procedural justice, and the intervening mechanisms at…
Lindsey Piercy: UK Researcher Enhances Police De-Escalation Training with Immersive AI, VR Simulations
De-escalation training is a vital tool for police officers — helping to reduce the need for force and ensuring safer outcomes for everyone involved in a tense situation. Yet, navigating these high-pressure moments is far from simple. Stephen Ware, associate professor in the Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering at the University of Kentucky,…
Rita Haverkamp, Frederik Kohler: Who Accepts What During the Crisis? Results From an Online Survey on the Acceptance of COVID-19 Protective Measures (in German)
During the COVID-19 pandemic, government emergency measures restricted fundamental rights to an unprecedented extent. Containing coronavirus infections depended entirely on the willingness of the population to comply with these rules. The acceptance of emergency measures among the population fluctuated. This raises the question of who accepts and complies with such emergency rules and under what…
UNDP: Transforming Police in Сrisis
When danger strikes, people often turn to the police. But in many parts of the world, that’s not an option, either due to mistrust, abusive practices, or simply because the police are out of reach. In crisis-affected regions, effective and accountable policing is critical for individuals and communities to feel safe. The International Day of Police…
Matt Clement: Metropolitan Policing in Crisis
Ever since the killing of George Floyd in May 2020, there has been a growth in social movements resisting aspects of policing in the US and the UK. In the UK it has evolved in particular directions in response to various controversies in policing and a growing mood to resist increasingly authoritarian legislation emerging from…
Report Finds That Gardaí Violated Garda Policies and Human Rights Obligations When Policing Protest
The Irish Network of Legal Observers has today published its first report on a recent protest which took place in the vicinity of Dublin’s port tunnel on Saturday 4 October 2025. The new Network, which is co-convened by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) and the Irish Centre for Human Rights at the University…
Ben Bradford, Jonathan Jackson: Trust in the Police: What is to be Done?
There are some important caveats to the discussion above. While it is fairly clear that improvements in public trust are most likely to be garnered from policing styles that can be glossed as neighbourhood or community policing, visibility, presence, and rapid, effective, response to low level—or volume—crime, this does not automatically imply that this is…