Social Justice: Outcome and Procedure

Test of the Construct and Criteria Validity of a German Measure of Organizational Justice

Organizational justice is a well-known and increasingly often measured construct in work-related psychological research, for which, however, different kinds of measures are used. Colquitt (2001 ) developed a four-dimensional measure of organizational justice to allow for the comparison of different studies. Two studies provide evidence for the construct (Study 1) and criteria validity (Study 2) of the German version of the Colquitt measure with regard to perceived supervisor behavior as well as employees’ attitudes and intentions. In Study 1, the measure demonstrated construct validity using a German sample of employees (N = 227) from different companies: Each dimension correlated differently with work-related dimension of supervisor behavior. To demonstrate criteria validity in Study 2 (N = 315 employees), the justice measure predicted different, theoretically linked work-related employee behaviors or attitudes (i.e., intentions to leave, job satisfaction, job stress, individual organizational citizenship behavior). Results are discussed with regard to theoretical and practical implications, intercultural differences, and future research.

Public meetings about suspected cancer clusters: the impact of voice, interactional justice, and risk perception on attendees' attitudes in six communities

Holding a public meeting is a frequent method of communicating with community residents during official investigations into possible cancer clusters; however, there has been little formal research into the effectiveness of this method of health communication. This article presents research examining the influence of public meetings held during ongoing cancer cluster investigations in six U.S. communities. Drawing on social psychological theories of organizational justice, it examines the degree to which three specific elements of justice, including having a voice in the process, receiving fair interactional treatment, and facing equal risk of loss (i.e., cancer), influenced five outcome variables: meeting satisfaction, community connectedness, willingness to accept meeting outcomes or recommendations, willingness to attend future public meetings, and concern about the potential cancer cluster. The analysis of data collected from meeting attendees who responded to the mailed survey (N = 165) confirms a strong role for justice concerns in public meeting evaluations. In particular, perceptions of voice and interactional treatment had consistently large effects on the outcome variables, suggesting that managing a fair public engagement process can contribute to positive civic outcomes even during periods of heightened community concern about area cancer rates.

Noise within the social context: annoyance reduction through fair procedures

The social context of noise exposure is a codeterminant of noise annoyance. The present study shows that fairness of the exposure procedure (sound management) can be used as an instrument to reduce noise annoyance. In a laboratory experiment (N = 117) participants are exposed to aircraft sound of different sound pressure level (SPL: 50 vs 70 dB A)--which is experienced as noise--while they work on a reading task. The exposure procedure (fair versus neutral) is modeled in line with findings from social justice theory. In the fair condition, participants can voice their preference for a certain sound sample, although they cannot deduce whether their preference is granted. In the neutral condition, participants are not asked to voice their preference. Results show the predicted interaction effect of sound pressure level and procedure on annoyance: Annoyance ratings are significantly lower in the fair condition than in the neutral condition, but this effect is found only in the 70 dB condition. When the SPL is considerably disturbing, fair procedures reduce noise annoyance. Consequences of the reported findings for both theory and practice are discussed.

Third-party attitudes and strain reactions to the threat of a labor strike

The authors examined how dispute-related stressors predicted strain experienced by third parties (N = 270) and their perceptions of a potential strike by part-time faculty. Immediately preceding a strike deadline, the authors surveyed students on their support for the union, perceived fairness, perceived effects of the impending strike, and perceived control. The authors also measured perceptions regarding information about the strike and psychological strain. Students facing increased disruptions because of the potential strike had decreased perceived control over their own tasks and over the university policies, and they experienced higher strain. Having more information about the dispute was associated with increased perceived task and policy control but was unassociated with strain. Both task and policy control moderated the relationship between disruptions and strain.

Psychological Perspectives on Legitimacy and Legitimation

Legitimacy is a psychological property of an authority, institution, or social arrangement that leads those connected to it to believe that it is appropriate, proper, and just. Because of legitimacy, people feel that they ought to defer to decisions and rules, following them voluntarily out of obligation rather than out of fear of punishment or anticipation of reward. Being legitimate is important to the success of authorities, institutions, and institutional arrangements since it is difficult to exert influence over others based solely upon the possession and use of power. Being able to gain voluntary acquiescence from most people, most of the time, due to their sense of obligation increases effectiveness during periods of scarcity, crisis, and conflict. The concept of legitimacy has a long history within social thought and social psychology, and it has emerged as increasingly important within recent research on the dynamics of political, legal, and social systems.