Through the lens of justice: Just world beliefs mediate relationships between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being

Abstract

Previous research has found that experiences with discrimination are often associated with lower levels of well-being among ethnic minority members, but hardly any attention has been given to the processes underlying this relationship. Two studies were conducted among ethnic Turks and Moroccans in the Netherlands to examine the hypothesis that the belief in a just world for self mediates the association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being. In both studies, negative relationships were found between perceived blatant and subtle discrimination and subjective well-being. These relationships were, however, fully mediated by people's belief in a just world for self. The reversed possibility that perceptions of discrimination mediate the relationship between the belief in a just world for self and well-being, was not supported. These findings lend support to the idea that discrimination has a negative effect on ethnic minority members’ well-being because it undermines their belief that the world is just to them.