Public support for conducted energy weapons (CEWs) in Iceland: the role of trust and police legitimacy

Drawing on procedural justice theory and dialogic legitimacy frameworks, this study examines how trust and legitimacy, fear of crime, and sociodemographic factors predict public support for conducted energy weapon (CEW) use in a high-trust policing environment. Data come from two cross-sectional surveys fielded before and after a nationwide rollout, measuring general support for police carrying CEWs and situational support across nine operational scenarios. Trust and legitimacy were the strongest predictors, explaining roughly 30–32% of variance alone. Fear of crime was a small but significant positive predictor once trust was controlled. Age showed a divergent pattern: older respondents expressed lower general support but higher support in specific scenarios. Support rose significantly between waves independently of changes in trust, suggesting the transparent communication accompanying the rollout may have strengthened endorsement through a dialogic legitimacy process. Findings underscore the primacy of normative motivations in attitudes toward expanded police authority beyond Anglo-American contexts.