An examination of police officers’ self-legitimacyMeško, Gorazd (Avtor) Hacin, Rok (Avtor) self-legitimacypolicepolice officerscomparative studySloveniaPolice (self-)legitimacy is dialogical in nature and influenced by social contexts. In this comparative study, conducted on anational sample of 1,380 police officers in Slovenia, collected over three periods, the stability of police officers’ self-legiti-macy and its antecedents are tested. The regression models revealed differences in self-legitimacy and its antecedents acrossperiods, supporting the thesis of the unstable nature of police self-legitimacy. The importance of police officers’ relations withcolleagues for the perception of their own legitimacy increased over the years, while their perception of supervisors’ fairnessand audience legitimacy decreased. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of social context on police officers’ self-legitimacy and the complex nature of police legitimacy.20262026-03-31 11:10:49Znanstveno delo97668sl