Week 12: Justice & Injustice Exam Notes PDF

**Week 12: Justice and Injustice -- Exam Notes** **Overview of Social Psychology and Justice** - Social psychologists are interested in **how individuals determine what is just or unjust** and **how they react to injustice and justice**. - They aim to use this research to help create...

**Week 12: Justice and Injustice -- Exam Notes** **Overview of Social Psychology and Justice** - Social psychologists are interested in **how individuals determine what is just or unjust** and **how they react to injustice and justice**. - They aim to use this research to help create a more just society. - Social psychologists focus on the **subjective experience** of justice, rather than attempting to define what is fair or unjust. They are more interested in how **others judge and respond to justice**. **Key Questions Social Psychologists Ask About Justice:** 1. **What do people perceive as fair?** 2. **How are fairness perceptions formed?** 3. **How do these perceptions influence cognition, affect, and behavior?** 4. **What do people do to achieve justice?** **What is Justice?** - **Justice** is believed to prevail when we **treat others according to what they are entitled to**, and receive what we deserve. - **Justice** = Treating others fairly based on their entitlement. - **Injustice** occurs when rewards or punishments are **not proportional to what is deserved**. **The Social Exchange Theory of Justice** - Initially, **early social psychologists** assumed that people were motivated purely by **self-interest**, driven by personal gain with little concern for others or justice. - However, this view was later challenged. - It led to the development of **Social Exchange Theory**, which proposes that individuals strive to **maximize rewards and minimize** costs in relationships, which may not always involve fairness but may **appear fair**. **Key Aspects of Social Exchange Theory:** - People seek to **get as many rewards as possible** for **minimal effort**. - Relationships are based on **maximizing rewards** and **minimizing costs**. - **Fairness** is often **not important**---it just needs to **look fair**. **Examples of Social Exchange Theory:** 1. Doing just enough work to avoid complaints (e.g., parents doing minimal housework to avoid conflict). 2. Buying gifts that are **just enough to appear thoughtful**, but not beyond what is necessary. **Research on Motivations for Justice** 1. **Pritchard et al. (1972)**: Found that **overpaid** students felt uncomfortable and performed more work to justify the extra money, motivated by fairness rather than self-interest. - Students who felt **underpaid** decreased their work performance. 2. **Walster et al. (1978)**: Found that **overpaid individuals** worked harder to justify their pay. 3. **Schmitt & Marwell (1972)**: Overpaid people might leave their job for a lower, fairer wage elsewhere. 4. **Montada & Schneider (1989)**: Advantaged individuals often redistribute resources to help disadvantaged others. **The Scope of Justice** - **Scope of Justice** refers to the psychological boundary that defines **who is entitled to justice or fairness**. Those **within the scope** are treated with fairness, while those **outside** are vulnerable to harm. **Characteristics of the Scope of Justice:** 1. **Inside the scope**: Individuals are granted fairness and moral consideration. 2. **Outside the scope**: Individuals may experience harmful treatment and lack support. 3. People feel **apathy** for those outside the scope, often justifying harmful behaviors (e.g., in war or conflict situations). **Influences on the Scope of Justice:** 1. **Similarity to the target**: More similar individuals are seen as more deserving of justice. 2. **Context of conflict**: During times of **scarcity or war**, the scope of justice narrows (e.g., focusing on family over strangers). 3. **Utility to self/society**: Those who benefit you or society are more likely to be included in the scope of justice. **Studies on the Scope of Justice:** 1. **Kals & Strubel (2017)**: Found that **volunteers** were more likely to support refugees if they viewed them as within their scope of justice. 2. **Opotow (1993)**: Found that **utility** (how the bombardier beetle benefits people) and **conflict** (low threat) were successful in expanding the scope of justice to include the beetle. **Types of Justice** **1. Procedural Justice** - Concerned with **how decisions are made** (e.g., who makes the decision, what processes are used, whether everyone is treated equally). - **Key factors** in procedural justice: 1. **Consistency** -- Fair treatment for all. 2. **Bias suppression** -- No personal bias in decision-making. 3. **Accuracy** -- Decisions based on correct information. 4. **Correctability** -- Opportunity for appeal or revision. 5. **Representativeness** -- All stakeholders are involved. 6. **Ethicality** -- Decisions reflect universal values. - **Interactional Justice** focuses on **interpersonal treatment** during decision-making, evaluating **truthfulness**, **justification**, and **respect**. **2. Distributive Justice** - Concerned with the **fair allocation of resources and rewards** (e.g., how rewards or punishments are divided). - **Distributive Justice** relies on three principles: 1. **Equity**: Rewards based on **contribution** (e.g., the person who works the most gets the most). 2. **Equality**: Everyone gets the **same** outcome. 3. **Need**: Resources allocated based on **need** (e.g., a person in greater need gets more). **Distribution Theories:** 1. **Relative Deprivation Theory**: Focuses on **comparing outcomes** between individuals (e.g., comparing wealth between individuals). 2. **Equity Theory**: Focuses on the **fairness of inputs and outcomes** (e.g., effort put in compared to rewards received). 3. **Updated Equity Theory**: Looks at how justice is distributed using **Equity**, **Equality**, and **Need** principles. **Research on Distribution of Justice:** 1. **Leung & Bond (1984)**: Found that **Chinese** participants preferred **equal distributions** among friends but favored **equity-based distributions** among strangers. 2. **Törnblom et al. (1985)**: Swedes preferred **equality** while Americans leaned toward **equity**. **Retributive Justice** - **Retributive Justice** refers to a theory that **punishments should be proportional** to the crime committed. It focuses on **penalties** that match the **severity** of wrongdoing. **Procedural Justice vs. Distributive Justice** 1. **Alexander & Ruderman (1987)**: Found that **procedural justice** was more strongly related to **job satisfaction**than **distributive justice**. Factors like fairness in **participation**, **appraisal**, and **supervisor evaluation** were key to job satisfaction. 2. **Colquitt et al. (2001)**: Found that **distributive justice** predicted job satisfaction, but **procedural justice** was a stronger predictor of **general job satisfaction** and commitment. **Group Engagement Model** - This model explores how **group identity** influences **extra-role behaviour** (actions beyond basic job requirements). - **Social identity** and **perceived fairness** in processes and economic outcomes influence individuals to **go above and beyond** in their roles. - Factors like **procedural justice** and **economic outcomes** help build strong **group identification**, leading to **extra-role behaviour**.