Perceptions Of Procedural Justice Research Articles

SME employee performance appraisal formalization and trust in leadership change

PurposeThis study aims to examine the influence of employee performance appraisal (PA) formalization on changes to one component of the employee–leadership social exchange relationship within the context of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Specifically, it builds upon extant research on human resource management within SMEs, performance appraisals and social exchange theory to consider the role of performance appraisal formalization in effecting change in the level of trust employees have in their leaders.Design/methodology/approachTo test study hypotheses, this study analyzes responses to two survey waves completed by employees of a US-based SME operating within the commercial construction industry. This SME formalized the PA process in between the administration of the first and second surveys. Study data were analyzed using hierarchical ordinary least squares regression.FindingsThe results of this study suggest that the formalization of PA has a positive effect on change in trust in leadership (TIL). Study results also suggest that employee perceptions of PA utility, procedural justice and satisfaction with the PA process are positively related to changes in TIL. This study also found that the effects of employee perceptions of PA utility and procedural justice on changes in TIL are mediated by employee satisfaction with the PA process.Research limitations/implicationsAs a consequence of study design, the results found in this study may be limited with respect to their external validity. Researchers and practitioners are encouraged to use caution before generalizing study findings to other contexts.Practical implicationsThis study suggests that PA formalization represents a means of increasing employee trust. Moreover, study results suggest that SME leaders hoping to increase employee TIL should be thoughtful about how they implement the PA process, paying particular attention to the usefulness of the feedback they provide and ensuring that the process of PA is viewed as being fair by employees. In doing so, SME leaders will enhance their employees’ satisfaction with the PA process, thereby increasing the trust they place in SME leadership.Originality/valueThis study extends research by considering the consequences of PA formalization with respect to changes in SME employee TIL. In doing so, this study heeds calls for additional research on the consequences of PA within SMEs, as well as sheds light on how PA formalization shapes the relationship between SME employees and leaders.

Neighborhood cohesion and procedural justice in policing among Black adults: The moderating role of cultural race-related stress.

This study explored how neighborhood cohesion is related to perceptions of procedural justice in policing, and the moderating role of cultural race-related stress among Black adults. We conducted hierarchical regression analyses of a US sample of Black adults (N = 604) to examine if neighborhood cohesion and cultural race-related stress relate to global procedural justice in policing and procedural justice during a critical police stop. Moderation analyses were conducted to determine if cultural race-related stress strengthens or weakens the relationship between neighborhood cohesion and procedural justice in policing. Neighborhood cohesion was positively related to procedural justice at critical stops. For participants with above average stress from cultural racism, positive neighborhood cohesion was related to greater global perceptions of procedural justice in policing. Altogether, these findings highlight how structural and local environmental factors can influence perceptions of police among Black adults in the US.

Social Distance Between Prisoners and Prison Staff

This article focuses on social distance and explores possible differences between factors that influence social distance in a variety of prison environments. Results from multiple regression analyses show that the perception of procedural justice and legitimacy of prison staff, the presence of violent subculture, and age are the best predictors of social distance. These findings highlight the unstable nature of social distance. Moreover, the presence of social distance varies over time and across different prison settings. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Procedural Justice, Posturing and Defiant Action: Exploring Prisoner Reactions to Prison Authority

Prison staff are vital for enforcing order in prisons. However, order is not only maintained by what prison staff do, but also relies on prisoners willingly following the directives of prison staff and complying with prison rules and procedures. This article puts forward the idea that how prison staff treat prisoners can affect the social distancing prisoners put between themselves and prison staff, potentially making defiance and non-compliance more difficult to manage. Social distancing is operationalised in this article as motivational posturing. Using survey responses from 177 Australian prisoners, the article shows a strong association between prisoners’ perceptions of procedural justice in prison and their self-reported compliance with prison rules. It also shows for the first time that motivational postures exist in a corrections context, and are associated with both procedural justice perceptions and self-reported compliance behaviour. Postures are also found to mediate the procedural justice/compliance relationship.

Personal characteristics and applicants’ perceptions of procedural fairness in a selection context

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine a varied set of personal characteristics (i.e. cultural values tied to Confucianism, Big Five personality attributes and test experience) for their combined ability to predict job applicants’ expected and experienced procedural fairness in the context of personnel selection.Design/methodology/approachA total of 324 applicants were surveyed as part of a process to select entry-level positions at a large IT manufacturing company in eastern China. Data were gathered in two waves, such that applicants’ personal characteristics and fairness expectations were obtained prior to their perceptions of procedural fairness, which were collected after the selection interview.FindingsConfucian values, neuroticism, conscientiousness and test experience all predicted applicants’ procedural fairness expectations. Only test experience had both direct and indirect effects on procedural justice perceptions. All other effects involving personal characteristics and experience of procedural fairness were mediated by applicants’ fairness expectations.Research limitations/implicationsThe demonstration of the impact of a varied set of personal characteristics on applicants’ perceptions of procedural fairness is consistent with theory-driven models intended to understand and predict these perceptions. The findings suggest, among other considerations, that multinational businesses cannot assume that a standardized approach to selection will be viewed in the same manner by applicants across national contexts.Originality/valueThe authors show, in an operational employee selection context, how a varied set of personal characteristics can usefully combine to predict applicants’ procedural fairness expectations, as well as their experience of procedural fairness.

Inmate Responses to Experiences With Court System Procedural and Distributive Justice

According to criminal justice theories, perceptions of procedural and distributive justice drive opinions on fairness, subsequently affecting behavior. We contend that such perceptions also affect the emotional states of incarcerated individuals, identifying court experiences as the focus of our study. Through fieldwork at a male maximum-security prison, we find that inmates expressed negative emotional responses associated with three factors: trial, public defenders, and appeals. Participants described perceived fairness through personal comparisons to alternative procedures and outcomes often connected to socioeconomic resources and related perceptions to emotions such as frustration, regret, resentment, and hopelessness. We situate our findings within theories of fairness and inmate adjustment research.

An examination of the influence of procedurally just strategies on legal cynicism among urban youth experiencing police contact.

Adolescents experience more police-initiated contacts resulting from relatively minor infractions than any other group, and often these interactions do not result in notable legal consequences. However, such interactions may have long-term consequences for adolescent perceptions of the justice system. Using data from the age 15 wave of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, our study examines associations between situational and process features of police contact and legal cynicism in adolescence, accounting for demographic characteristics, self-reported delinquency, neighborhood context, and stop outcome. Relative to youth who experienced only vicarious police contact, youth who had direct or both direct and vicarious police contact reported higher levels of legal cynicism. Youth perceptions of procedural justice were associated with lower legal cynicism. Situational features of police contact such as harsh language and frisking were related to higher legal cynicism. Directions for future research, including the need for longitudinal research on this topic, are discussed.

An examination of inmate adjustment stratified by time served in prison

PurposeDifferential Coercion and Social Support (DCSS) theory is used to examine whether sources of coercion and social support differ in their effects on inmate adjustment across periods of time served (< 1 year, 1–5 years, and > 5 years). Method and resultsA nationally representative sample of male offenders incarcerated in state prisons is used to examine whether coercion (e.g., confinement in restrictive housing, victimization) and social support (e.g., perceptions of procedural justice and visits) influence assault misconducts, institutionalized resistance, and mental health outcomes across different periods of time served. The analytical strategy includes several binary logistic regressions with robust standard errors in addition to examining differences in predicted probabilities across models through average discrete changes (ADC). Sources of coercion, such as confinement in restrictive housing, largely influence each of the outcomes across periods of time served in prison, whereas sources of social support have mixed effects. However, there is limited variability in the magnitude of the effects across categories of time served. ConclusionDCSS provides an understanding of how inmates may adjust differently to the prison environment based upon the amount of time that is served in prison. Interventions and treatment programs should focus on developing prosocial interpersonal relations between inmates and correctional staff.

Influence of Organizational Conflict Management and Procedural Justice on Employee Performance in Academia of Pakistan

We conduct this research to investigate the way conflict management and procedural justice can affect employee performance in academia of Pakistan. We used the quantitative method to conduct our research, we take a sample size of 322 employees (n=322) who work at different positions in universities. We used SPSS technique to analyze our data, use different tests regression, correlation and reliabilities. The results of correlation show a significant relationship between all of our three variables. This shows that for organizational performance, both conflict management strategies adopted by managers and perception of procedural justice are important.

Academic perspectives on metrics: procedural justice as a key factor in evaluations of fairness

ABSTRACT The research literature emphasises the emergence – in the English context particularly – of performative accountabilities associated with metrics-based evaluation. Recent studies observe uneven effects of such evaluations at organisational level. This UK-based study examines academics’ perceptions of the fairness of organisational accountabilities, drawing on organisational studies literature to identify dimensions of organisational justice. A cluster analysis identified four groups varying in their perceptions of procedural justice (fairness of organisational processes associated with metrics) and distributive justice (performance consequences of metrics). Exploring the responses further, interview respondents emphasised greater concerns with procedural justice and greater variability in accountability practices relating to research metrics than with teaching. In groups where procedural justice was evaluated more positively, academics saw metrics being applied in ways aligned with valued research and teaching enhancement practices. The study draws attention to institutional practices that contribute to academic perceptions of fairness and increased alignment between organisational and individual goals.

The Effects of Procedural Justice on Cooperation and Compliance among Inmates in a Work Release Program

Order is critical to the safe and efficient management of correctional institutions. Procedural justice theory suggests that the fair and rightful exercise of authority by correctional staff can promote order by stimulating within inmates a sense of obligation to obey authority. Triggering this sense of obligation is thought to encourage voluntary cooperation and compliance without relying on formal sanctions. Using data from a 2006 survey of 213 adult male inmates in a Chicago transition facility (a minimum security prison), we test the effects of procedural justice and other factors on cooperation and compliance. The results reveal that inmates’ perceptions of procedural justice have a mix of direct and indirect effects on their cooperation and compliance. Our findings clarify the role of procedural justice and other factors in maintaining order within correctional settings. Supplementary analyses clarify the effects of anger on cooperation and compliance and provide fruitful avenues for future research.

Legal Socialization in Brazil: Examining the Generalizability of the Procedural Justice Model

Research examining the legal socialization process continues to be almost exclusively focused on US adolescents, calling into question the generalizability of this body of work. The purpose of this study was to test a popular model of legal socialization — the procedural justice model — amongst a representative sample of young adolescents in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Approximately 750 12 year-olds completed a survey assessing their direct and vicarious contact with police, judgments of police procedural justice, crime perceptions, police legitimacy, legal cynicism, and criminal offending. Both direct and indirect experience with the police was associated with lower procedural justice. Police legitimacy was associated with both procedural justice and crime perceptions; however, legal cynicism was only associated with perceptions of crime. Finally, higher perceptions of police legitimacy, but not legal cynicism, was associated with lower levels of self-reported offending. Overall, this study showed mixed support for the generalizability of the procedural justice model of legal socialization. While the links among police contact, procedural justice, police legitimacy, and offending were substantively identical to findings from the US, no support was found for the argument of legal cynicism as an additional mechanism linking police contact to criminal offending in youth.

Revisiting the role of distributive justice in Tyler’s legitimacy theory

Tyler’s theory of legitimacy identified procedural justice and distributive justice as antecedents of legitimacy, but placed distributive justice in a relatively minor position compared with procedural justice. This has led to researchers paying less attention to distributive justice in the development of theory, despite consistent findings that distributive justice is important to a number of outcomes for criminal justice authorities. This report uses uncertainty management theory to revisit Tyler’s legitimacy model and gain a more nuanced understanding of distributive justice. The proposed model is tested using a series of latent variable analyses conducted on a sample of 2169 adults and a factorial vignette design. The vignette design randomly manipulates outcome favorability and officer behavior during a hypothetical traffic stop. Multiple indicator multiple cause (MIMIC) models are then utilized to test the impact of these manipulations on perceptions of procedural justice and distributive justice. This is followed by a structural equation model that tests the relationships between procedural justice, distributive justice, and legitimacy. Officer behavior is a primary predictor of both procedural justice and distributive justice. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that distributive justice judgments are shaped by perceptions of procedural justice. Accordingly, distributive justice mediates the relationship between procedural justice and legitimacy. Distributive justice should not be treated as a competing explanation for legitimacy evaluations, but as a concept that contextualizes why procedural justice is important.

How Do the Components of Procedural Justice and Driver Race Influence Encounter-Specific Perceptions of Police Legitimacy During Traffic Stops?

Procedural justice is often recognized as the key antecedent of police legitimacy. However, less is known about how the components of procedural justice, treatment and decision-making quality, influence perceptions of police legitimacy. This study utilizes a 2 × 2 × 2 survey experiment to explore the direct effects of the components of procedural justice, and the moderating effects of driver race, on perceptions of encounter-specific fairness and legitimacy. Results indicate that treatment quality is a more salient predictor of encounter-specific fairness and legitimacy than decision-making quality. In addition, simple effects analyses reveal that driver race moderates perceptions of encounter-specific fairness but not encounter-specific perceptions of legitimacy. The findings imply that police officers should emphasize respectful treatment during encounters with the public.

The Effect of Organizational Justice Perceptions of Employees on Their Burnout Levels: A Research For the Nurses

Purpose – The present study aims to demonstrate the effect of organizational justice perceptions of nurses on their burnout levels. Design / Methodology/ Approach – For this purpose, face-to-face interviews were carried out with 200 nurses working at public hospitals in Tokat province. The data were evaluated through structural equation modelling. Results – As a result of the study, it was found out that there was a negative significant relationship between organizational justice and burnout. It was also demonstrated that the level of procedural justice perception from the subdimensions of organizational justice were the highest whereas emotional exhaustion from the subdimensions of burnout was the most commonly observed among the participants. Discussion – As a result of the study, a negative significant relationship has been found out between the organizational justice perceptions and the burnout levels of nurses. This result is in parallel to the literature in general terms.

The role of sales team intragroup conflict on critical job outcomes

Sales teams are often structured into groups by territories, product categories, or hierarchical levels of salespeople which provide support to one another while counter-intuitively competing for individual resources, rewards, and promotions. We posit that the impact of conflict within the sales team (sales team intragroup conflict) on critical individual-level job outcomes (job satisfaction and intent to turnover) is contingent upon two loci of influences: individually-influenced goal orientations (learning and performance) and managerially-influenced justice perceptions (procedural and distributive). We empirically examine sales team intragroup conflict through a primary data collection of 195 distributor salespeople organized into 20 geographically dispersed teams. Our results largely support our hypotheses that there are nuanced effects across the loci of influences, such that in conflict-laden environments, having a performance orientation or perception of organizational distributive justice enhance job satisfaction, while a perception of organizational procedural justice decreases job satisfaction. Thus, we answer the call to better understand the role of conflict in marketing exchanges.

Mandatory, fast, and fair: Case outcomes and procedural justice in a family drug court

Problem-solving courts are traditionally voluntary in nature to promote procedural justice and to advance therapeutic jurisprudence. The Family Treatment Drug Court (FTDC) in Lancaster County, Nebraska is a mandatory dependency court for families with allegations of child abuse or neglect related to substance use. We conducted a program evaluation examining parents’ case outcomes and perceptions of procedural justice to examine whether a mandatory problem-solving court could replicate the positive outcomes of problem-solving courts. We employed a quasi-experimental design that compared FTDC parents to traditional dependency court parents (control parents). We examined court records to gather court orders, compliance with court orders, case outcomes, and important case dates. We also conducted 263 surveys (FTDC = 232; control = 31) to understand parents’ perceptions of procedural justice in the court process. Overall, FTDC parents were more compliant with some court orders than control parents. Although FTDC and control parents did not have significantly different case outcomes, FTDC parents’ cases closed significantly faster than control parents’ cases. FTDC parents also had higher perceptions of procedural justice than control parents. Mediation analyses indicated that FTDC parents believed the court process was more fair and therefore participated more consistently in court-ordered services and therefore reunified more often than control parents. Mandatory problem-solving courts can serve parents through the same mechanisms as voluntary problem-solving courts. More research is necessary to examine which specific elements of problem-solving courts, aside from the voluntary nature, are essential to maintain their effectiveness.

Improving relationship performance on platforms: the role of platform technology usage in promoting justice

PurposeTechnology has dramatically changed the nature of interorganizational relationships and the ways partners interact with each other. In the new platform business model, platform technology usage seems to work as a governance mechanism to regulate operations and manage platform builder–platform participant relationships. To respond to these changes, this study aims to examine how platform technology usage in platform operations influenced the relationship quality between the platform builder and platform participants by promoting perceptions of three types of justice (procedural, distributive and informational).Design/methodology/approachThe authors propose that it is through the perception of three types of justice (procedural, distributive and informational) that platform technology usage exerts its governance effect on the platform relationship. In doing this, the authors seek to answer the following two related research questions in the platform setting: How does platform technology usage drive relationship performance via different types of justice perceptions? Which type of justice affects relationship performance most effectively?FindingsThe results from a survey of 384 participant firms from two of the largest digital platforms for mobile/PC application in China reveal that platform technology usage leads to better relationship performance through enhanced perceptions of procedural, distributive, and informational justice. The positive impacts of procedural justice and distributive justice on relationship performance are greater than that of informational justice, while the impacts of procedural justice and distributive justice show no significant differences.Originality/valueThese findings provide novel insights into the role and mechanisms of platform technology usage in platform relationship management.

Parental and student perceptions of procedural justice and legitimacy in the context of truancy: Results from a randomized field trial

The legitimacy of authorities is paramount to their ability to exercise their powers. We examine truanting students’ and their parents’ perceptions of the legitimacy of authorities in the context of the adapted family group conference component of the Ability School Engagement Program (ASEP), a police–school partnership aimed at reducing antisocial behavior. To evaluate the program, 102 truanting students were randomly allocated to a control or the ASEP condition. Students’ and their parents’ perceptions of authorities were collected to explore how this intervention component, specifically designed to encourage legitimacy views through procedural justice, impacted perceptions of police and school staff. Results indicated that parents participating in ASEP conferences showed significant changes in their perceptions of legitimacy of authorities. ASEP parents’ perceptions of police increased following the conference, but parental perceptions of school legitimacy appeared to be affected by perceptions of the procedural justness (or unjustness) of specific authority figures in the conference. Parental views of school authorities were driven by the few school representatives who failed to engage families in procedurally just ways. Students themselves showed little change in their views following the ASEP conference, suggesting the conference alone was not sufficient for bringing about changes in student perceptions of authority legitimacy.

The Effect of Personality Traits and Equity Sensitivity on the Employees’ Fairness Perception in the Lebanese Pharmaceutical Field

The pharmaceutical sector plays a fundamental role in supporting the economic development of a country. The performance of this sector is influenced by employees’ performance, which can be affected by the way employees perceive fairness at their workplace. Fairness perception can be affected by the equity sensitivity type and the personality traits of employees. The Lebanese context lacks studies that reveal the fairness perception of Lebanese pharmacists as a driver of retention at work and the relationship between fairness perception, equity sensitivity and personality traits in the pharmaceutical settings. For that, this study was conducted to survey the Lebanese pharmacists’ perception of fairness and the effect of equity sensitivity and personality trait. The paper reports on a questionnaire survey of pharmacists with 73% response rate. Results showed that participants were benevolent rather than entitled and displayed strong expression in all personality traits especially conscientiousness. Pharmacists showed low perception of distributive and procedural justice. The perception of informational justice was lower in entitled than other equity sensitivity types. Pearson correlation showed a statistically significant positive weak correlation between openness to experience and procedural justice. Conscientiousness, on the other hand, revealed a statistically significant negative weak correlation with interpersonal justice. The informational justice was shown to be affected by personality traits and equity sensitivity types. Being benevolent, Lebanese pharmacists might be more patients-oriented than personal outcome-oriented and have greater tolerance for under-reward. Administrators are encouraged to ensure rewards based on justice to minimize the high cost of skilled-performers turnover of pharmacists.