Normative vs. Instrumental model of police legitimacy: examining the mediation effects of fear of sanction

The current study assesses the impact of fear of sanction on police legitimacy. Specifically, we examine both instrumental and normative police legitimacy by assessing the impact of procedural justice and police effectiveness as the predictor of perception of police legitimacy which ultimately leads to a sense of obligation to obey the police. Using a South Korean college sample (n = 2,188), we examine the mediation effect of fear of sanction on the antecedents of police legitimacy such as procedural justice and police effectiveness. The results indicate support for both instrumental and normative models of legitimacy, in that, procedural justice and police effectiveness were both significant predictors of perception of police legitimacy that leads to an increased sense of obligation to obey the police. However, fear of sanction failed to mediate the effects of procedural justice and police effectiveness on police legitimacy and obligation to obey.