National identity and distrust in the police: The case of North West Wales
| Published date | 01 January 2019 |
| Author | Stephanie OP Jones,Alexandra Würgler,Joanna Cuthbertson,Alannah Hemmings,Stefan Machura |
| Date | 01 January 2019 |
| DOI | 10.1177/1477370818764835 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
https://doi.org/10.1177/1477370818764835
European Journal of Criminology
2019, Vol. 16(1) 60 –80
© The Author(s) 2018
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/1477370818764835
journals.sagepub.com/home/euc
National identity and distrust
in the police: The case of
North West Wales
Stefan Machura , Stephanie OP Jones,
Alexandra Würgler, Joanna Cuthbertson
and Alannah Hemmings
School of Social Sciences, Bangor University, UK
Abstract
Trust in the police, as defined by perceived procedural fairness, just decisions and effectivity, may
be impacted by deep political divisions among the population, especially where citizens adopt
opposing national identities. In Europe, North West Wales is one such area. Nationalism is
intensified by language issues (Welsh vs. English) and historical experiences of UK institutions.
A sample of 207 residents living within the local authority of Gwynedd were asked to take part
in the study. A questionnaire survey addressed how much trust in the police ultimately depends
upon national identity as expressed by preference for the Welsh language, trust in UK institutions
and attitudes towards political symbols. Other factors tested included personal experience of the
police, the influence of news reports and police TV series, as well as the perceived effectiveness
of the police in addressing crime. Trust in UK institutions, preference for the Welsh language and
news reporting were found to have most influence on trust in the police.
Keywords
Media representation of police, national identity, North Wales, procedural justice, trust in
police, Welsh language
Introduction
In many countries, tension exists between citizens of different ethnic identities. This can
compromise the levels of trust in state institutions. One of the most crucial institutions is the
police, which has a symbiotic relationship with the public and largely depends on public
Corresponding author:
Stefan Machura, School of Social Sciences, Bangor University, Siliwen Road, Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2DG,
UK.
Email: s.machura@bangor.ac.uk
764835EUC0010.1177/1477370818764835European Journal of CriminologyMachura et al.
research-article2018
Article
Machura et al. 61
trust for its operation. However, citizens who hold deeply negative views of the police may
be reluctant to seek its help, advice and/or protection. This study investigates the relation-
ship between national identities and trust in the local police. Since the ground-breaking
work of David Easton (1965) on ‘diffuse support’, political scientists have noted that trust
can spread and infuse people’s general understanding of agencies. Trust in the police may
also depend on the belief that society is able to defend itself against crime, as Durkheim
(1976: 181) outlined. If people think that their community is collapsing, trust in the criminal
justice system decreases (Bradford and Myhill, 2015). A police force and its operations may
suffer significantly if people feel that it represents only one particular group of the society
(Chmielewski et al., 1997: 7) or it is viewed as part of a social order they oppose (Huq et al.,
2011). In Europe, there are several scenarios, from earlier violent large-scale conflicts that
have stabilized over time (for example, Danish- and German-speaking minorities in the
border region of Schleswig) or are turning away from violence and heavy-handed policing
(for example, the Spanish Basque country and South Tyrol in Italy), to peaceful and uninter-
rupted integration (for example, the Slavic Sorben people in Germany, certainly since 1945).
The present study focuses on one of the ‘four nations’ of the UK. The expression
refers to the presence of four peoples within one state in which their different national
identities are recognized. In addition, there are many layers of migration, including in-
migration from abroad. Different views of political history have influenced the sense of
belonging and identity in many parts of the UK. Where national identity appears under
threat, the police can be perceived as a tool in the struggle for power (Weitzer, 1985). The
use of force reduces trust in the police (Brodeur, 1983). People want the police to repre-
sent their sense of community but, if there is a plurality of communities in competition
with one another, this can lead to dissatisfaction.
In England, the police have become a symbol for competing definitions of the nation:
it represents either the long-established citizens who uphold traditional patterns, or those
open to new ways of living who welcome people from different backgrounds. Perceptions
of the police have been found to be closely connected to the politics of inclusion and
exclusion at local and national levels (Loader and Mulcahy, 2006). Trust in the police
and expectations of what they can – or at least should – achieve vary between genera-
tions and between cultural and ethnic milieus. Many of these feelings are aimed at the
police as agents of the local community in maintaining or creating cohesion, and some-
times have an intolerant undertone directed against people of other ethnic groups and
different cultural heritage (Loader and Mulcahy, 2006).
In Northern Ireland, there is an additional dimension to nationalist conflict: part of the
population aspires to join another state, and for them the police represent the resented
authority of the UK state (Weitzer, 1985; Mulcahy, 1999). The police in Northern Ireland
experienced the various stages of a civil war and its aftermath. Loyalist and nationalist
communities supported the police only when they favoured their side (Weitzer, 1985:
50–2). Only after the peace agreement was a police force established with a prospect of
serving everyone equally. Reformers had to address the contested issue of ‘police owner-
ship’, to the extent that ‘the British Union flag was no longer permitted to be flown from
police stations’ (Ellison, 2007: 246 and 251). Today, grievances have changed some-
what: loyalist and nationalist communities are both critical of the ‘poor policing service’
(Topping and Byrne, 2016: 535).
To continue reading
Request your trial