New report reveals levels of trust in the Criminal Justice System
A new report from the Institute for Criminal Policy Research reveals attitudes to sentencing and trust in justice in the UK
Professor Mike Hough of Birkbeck’s Institute for Criminal Research Policy has authored a report with colleagues at the University of Oxford and the London School of Economics, which reveals public attitudes to sentencing and trust in justice in the UK.
Trust in the justice system is important because it shapes the perceived legitimacy of the system as well as people’s willingness to cooperate with legal authorities. The study looked at confidence in the police and in the criminal justice system (CJS) as a whole.
The key findings of the survey were:
- Most people thought that the courts were too lenient, although responses were varied. However, most people underestimated the severity of current sentencing practices. When they were asked to express a sentencing preference for a specific hypothetical case they were relatively lenient.
- Contact with the police was an important predictor of both trust in the police and trust in the rest of the CJS. In relation to trust in the CJS as a whole this relationship was entirely asymmetrical (with negative contacts associated with lower trust, but positive contacts having no effect); in relation to trust in the police it was more symmetrical (positive contacts were associated with somewhat higher levels of trust).
- The legitimacy of the police was more important than the legitimacy of the courts in explaining people’s willingness to cooperate with legal authorities. Feeling an obligation to obey the police and feeling aligned with the moral values of the police were the most important factors in how willing people stated they were to cooperate with the police and criminal courts. Feeling aligned with the moral values of the courts was a less powerful predictor. Believing that the courts are too lenient was associated with a greater willingness to cooperate with legal authorities rather than a lesser willingness to cooperate with legal authorities.
- Levels of trust in fairness in the CJS were higher than levels of trust in effectiveness in the CJS.
- After long-term falls in trust and confidence in the CJS, in 2003 the trend changed to one of stability, and even a slight increase in public confidence in the police.
- Access to information, whether reflected in levels of education or in newspaper readership, appeared to shape attitudes to justice.
- Analysis of ESS data suggested that the UK did better than some European countries in terms of levels of public trust, but worse than others, such as the Nordic countries.
Professor Mike Hough said: “These results are important. They show that public trust in the courts and – in particular – trust in the police are preconditions for an effective justice system”.
The report was commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, to help assess public attitudes to the criminal justice system. The report drew on data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales and the European Social Survey.