Croatian immigrants’ trust in the police in Croatia and abroad: The roles of police integrity and transnational migration factors

Abstract

Research posits that immigrants view the police in the host countries more positively, especially when their experiences with the homeland police are unpleasant. However, empirical research often focuses on immigrants of color in White-dominant countries with drastically different cultures from their own. Using survey data of the first-generation Croatian immigrants in Germany (N = 274) and Ireland (N = 219), our research looks at how Croatian immigrants in two geopolitically adjacent countries perceive the police in both their homeland and current countries of residence. We find that police integrity factors have the greatest impact on immigrants’ trust in the police; namely, perceived corruption with the police consistently erodes Croatian immigrants’ trust in the police across contexts. The nature of immigrants’ previous contact with the police also helps determine their trust in the police in their host countries. Finally, transnational migration factors only have a conditional effect on the outcome.