Legal cynicism

Legal cynicism is a domain of legal socialization defined by a perception that the legal system and law enforcement agents are "illegitimate, unresponsive, and ill equipped to ensure public safety."^[1][2] It is related to police legitimacy, and the two serve as important ways for researchers to study citizens' perceptions of law enforcement.^[3]

Definitions

Sampson and Bartusch (1998) defined legal cynicism as "'anomie' about law".^[4] Based on Sampson & Bartusch's work, and on that of Leo Srole,^[5] Piquero et al. (2005) defined it based on respondents' answers to a five-question survey. In the survey, respondents were asked to rank, on a four-point scale, the extent to which they agreed with each of these statements:

1. Laws are meant to be broken,
2. It is okay to do anything you want,
3. There are no right or wrong ways to make money,
4. If I have a fight with someone, it is no one else's business, and
5. A person has to live without thinking about the future.^[6]

Causes and correlates

Legal cynicism can be exacerbated when police engage in aggressive misconduct in a community, which can lead to greater violence and less cooperation between the community's citizens and the police.^[7] It has been found to be higher in neighborhoods with higher levels of concentrated disadvantage, even after controlling for demographic factors and crime rates.^[4] The strongest predictor of legal cynicism is self-reported delinquency.^[8]

Effects

Legal cynicism and legitimacy both have significant effects on criminal offending, even after accounting for self-control.^[2] Legal cynicism is also associated with lower rates of desistance from intimate partner violence,^[9] higher homicide rates,^[10] and higher recidivism rates among released prisoners.^[11] It has also been found to affect parents' assessments of their adolescent children's violent behavior.^[12]

See also

• Police perjury
• The talk (racism in the United States)