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Public entities such as judges and the police have always faced criticism, but recent political framing that particularly attacks their morality is rising. Scholars and practitioners fear this trend politicizes neutral services and erodes their legitimacy.
We know little about whether these concerns are justified. Therefore, this research examines the (different) causal effects of accusations of bias (so-called moral bashing) and critiques based on effectiveness (performative bashing) on citizens’ perceptions of the benevolence and effectiveness of two key public actors: judges and the police. Furthermore, it explores to what extent positive messages diminish any negative effects.
Knowledge of the different effects of moral as well as performative critique and how to counter them is essential to understanding how citizens’ image of bureaucratic entities is shaped, how organizations can influence this image, and by extension how it influences trust in and legitimacy of public actors.
Picture by Maxim Hopman on Unsplash
