'The obvious response to political violence is stronger security. Protecting politicians, monitoring credible threats, and intervening when people move towards violence are clearly necessary. But enforcement deals largely with the threat once it has developed. Prevention requires us to think about why some people become profoundly alienated from government in the first place.
Our research points towards an approach known as procedural justice. “Procedurally just” governance is about how governments exercise their authority. It means treating citizens with respect, making decisions fairly and without bias to prevent benefiting one special-interest group over another, being transparent about motives for legislation or new government processes. It also means giving people meaningful opportunities to have their voices heard.
Importantly, our study found that when people perceived government as more procedurally just they reported lower levels of anger and were less likely to perceive the government as illegitimate.
... When authorities confront political extremism or violence, the temptation can be to clamp down harshly on would be troublemakers or enact more laws. Yet if people already believe government is corrupt and illegitimate, interactions and decisions they perceive as procedurally unjust can backfire and reinforce that worldview.'