To be or not to be armed: Icelandic police students’ attitudes towards routinely arming an unarmed police service

Iceland is one of five Western countries where police officers do not carry firearms. Instead, firearms are kept in lockboxes until access is permitted by a ranking officer. In 2022, however, the Minister of Justice sidestepped parliamentary procedure to allow officers to carry Tasers. This intensified an ongoing debate over police use of force—the highest level of which is the use of firearms. It also raises the question of what prospective police officers think about the possibility of allowing officers to carry firearms. This study examines Icelandic police students’ attitudes towards routine police armament using panel data for incoming (N=284) and graduating (N=158) students from the University of Akureyri from 2019 to 2024. Few incoming and graduating students (15% and 11%) favour routine armament. Findings for a paired sample (N=101) show a significant shift over the two-year studies, with many initial supporters becoming opponents by graduation. Trends across cohorts show support declining from 2019 but increasing in 2024, reflecting potential influences from recent policy changes and public and political discourse. Multinomial regression reveals that men, conservatives, and students with extra-legal attitudes towards police work are more likely to favour routine armament, although the effects of these factors diminish by graduation.