The formal-informal control nexus during COVID-19: What drives informal social control of social distancing restrictions during lockdown

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Author(s)
Sargeant, Elise
Murphy, Kristina
McCarthy, Molly
Williamson, Harley
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2021
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The public rely on the police to enforce the law, and the police rely on the public to report crime and assist them with their enquiries. Police action or inaction can also impact on public willingness to informally intervene in community problems. In this paper we examine the formal-informal control nexus in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on a survey sample of 1,595 Australians during COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, we examine the relationship between police effectiveness, collective efficacy, and public willingness to intervene when others violate lockdown restrictions. We find that perceptions of police ...
View more >The public rely on the police to enforce the law, and the police rely on the public to report crime and assist them with their enquiries. Police action or inaction can also impact on public willingness to informally intervene in community problems. In this paper we examine the formal-informal control nexus in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on a survey sample of 1,595 Australians during COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, we examine the relationship between police effectiveness, collective efficacy, and public willingness to intervene when others violate lockdown restrictions. We find that perceptions of police effectiveness in handling the COVID-19 crisis has a positive impact on the public’s willingness to intervene when others violate lockdown restrictions.
View less >
View more >The public rely on the police to enforce the law, and the police rely on the public to report crime and assist them with their enquiries. Police action or inaction can also impact on public willingness to informally intervene in community problems. In this paper we examine the formal-informal control nexus in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on a survey sample of 1,595 Australians during COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, we examine the relationship between police effectiveness, collective efficacy, and public willingness to intervene when others violate lockdown restrictions. We find that perceptions of police effectiveness in handling the COVID-19 crisis has a positive impact on the public’s willingness to intervene when others violate lockdown restrictions.
View less >
Journal Title
Crime & Delinquency
Copyright Statement
Sargeant, E; Murphy, K; McCarthy, M; Williamson, H, The formal-informal control nexus during COVID-19: What drives informal social control of social distancing restrictions during lockdown, Crime & Delinquency, 2021. Copyright YEAR The Authors. Reprinted by permission of SAGE Publications.
Note
This publication has been entered as an advanced online version in Griffith Research Online.
Subject
Criminology
Police Administration, Procedures and Practice
Law