Anomie and authority: how global events are reshaping public interactions with law enforcement

Hena Prince; Kelly Hine; Catherine Creamer

doi:10.1080/15614263.2025.2548270

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Anomie and authority: how global events are reshaping public interactions with law enforcement

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Anomie and authority: how global events are reshaping public interactions with law enforcement

Hena Prince, Kelly Hine and Catherine Creamer

Police Practice and Research, Vol.27(3), pp.361-382

2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15614263.2025.2548270

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Abstract

Police administration, procedures and practice

Law enforcement

Anomie

Social disruption

assaults on police

police

law enforcement

This study explores differences in the characteristics of assaults against police in Australia between relatively stable (2010–2020) and disruptive (2020–2024) periods to consider whether anomie may help explain any observed changes in offender behaviour. Descriptive analysis of 172 cases reveals a notable increase in young offenders and assaults triggered by personal crises during the disruptive period. Intentional assaults also rose sharply, suggesting heightened aggression and deliberate confrontations. However, despite increased intentionality, the severity of assaults, including the use of force and resulting injuries, did not escalate. These findings suggest that social instability intensifies frustration and aggression toward police but does not necessarily lead to more severe outcomes. The study highlights the importance of targeted policing practices, such as crisis intervention and youth-specific strategies, to manage aggression during periods of social upheaval.

Details

Title: Anomie and authority: how global events are reshaping public interactions with law enforcement
Authors: Hena Prince - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and Society
Kelly Hine (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and Society
Catherine Creamer - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and Society
Publication details: Police Practice and Research, Vol.27(3), pp.361-382
Publisher: Routledge
Date published: 2026
DOI: 10.1080/15614263.2025.2548270
ISSN: 1477-271X
Copyright note: © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
Organisation Unit: School of Law and Society
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991154340202621
Output Type: Journal article

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