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The Causes of the Legitimacy-Conferring and Republican Schoolmaster Capabilities of Courts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2022

Benjamin Woodson
Benjamin Woodson*
Affiliation:
University of Missouri–Kansas City
*
Contact the author at [email protected].
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Abstract

Some studies examining the effect of court decisions on public opinion examine their legitimacy-conferring role or ability to cause the public to accept specific policies. Others examine when courts act as a “republican schoolmaster” and change substantive policy attitudes. Using two studies, this article shows that these two effects are driven by different processes and caused by a different form of support. Legitimacy perceptions or diffuse support drives the process that causes people to accept specific policies. The process that changes a person’s substantive policy stance is driven by a person’s evaluation of the court’s previous policy decisions or specific support.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Law and Courts , Volume 7 , Issue 2 , Fall 2019 , pp. 281 - 303
Copyright
© 2019 by the Law and Courts Organized Section of the American Political Science Association. All rights reserved.

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