Policing, procedural justice and mental health

Professor Ben Bradford who is Professor of Global City Policing at University College London and Director of the Centre for Global City Policing, will speak about ‘Policing, procedural justice and mental health’. 

In his presentation Professor Bradford will explore the association between procedural (in)justice and mental health. An emerging evidence-base within the procedural justice literature draws upon established work with victims of crime and those exposed to aggressive policing to demonstrate that police encounters experienced as unfair and demeaning damage mental health. Yet, the psychological framework underlying procedural justice theory implies that this should be a bi-directional effect. Encounters experienced as fair and restorative can have positive implications. Whether and how often this unfolds in practice is as yet unknown, but the weight of the evidence nevertheless indicates that the normative importance of procedural justice lies not only in the recognition of rights but also the avoidance of harm.