The U.S. Supreme Court

Abstract

Legitimacy exists when citizens comply with governmental edicts despite substantive disapproval. Attribution of legitimacy may proceed from at least three antecedents: subscription to a "judicial myth," diffuse supportive orientations, and approval of past specific decisions. Survey research on both black and white students, however, fails to support any of the three. Instead, the disadvantaged (especially blacks) demonstrate the greatest propensity to obey. This, coupled with the fact that these same persons are the least integrated with the polity (e.g., they exhibit lower levels of myth subscription and diffuse support), leads to a tentative interpretation of legitimacy in terms of vulnerability.