Legitimacy, Trust, Social Capital, and Policing Styles

There currently is no consensus about why attitudes toward police vary by neighborhood. An unexplored explanation is that resident trust of police and perceptions of police legitimacy may depend on neighborhood levels of social capital. This article considers the relationships among trust, legitimacy, procedural justice, social capital, and policing styles. Treating trust and legitimacy as conceptually distinct, how neighborhood levels of social capital influence these perceptions and the style of policing that is most likely to promote these perceptions are discussed. Issues concerning the measurement of trust and legitimacy are also considered.