Social Psychology of Justice: Origins, Central Issues, Recent Developments, and Future Directions

Abstract

This article provides an overview of some selected aspects of social psychological theory and research on justice in the allocation of social resources. We start with a brief outline of the origins of systematic inquiries of justice in social psychology. Six central issues in social justice theory and research are discerned and discussed (the definition, dimensionality, and criteria of justice, the salience of the justice motive, the importance of justice, the formation of justice judgments, the cognitive and behavioral reactions to injustice, and the cross-cultural generality of justice considerations). A selective overview of recent applications, developments, and areas of interest are also presented, and some avenues for future research are suggested.