System Justification Research Articles

Supporting the status quo is weakly associated with subjective well-being: A comparison of the palliative function of ideology across social status groups using a meta-analytic approach.

Research has suggested that the endorsement of ideologies supporting the status quo leads to higher subjective psychological well-being-an idea labeled as the palliative function of ideology within system justification theory. Furthermore, this approach has suggested that this association should be moderated by social status. Specifically, the association between the endorsement of ideologies supporting the status quo and well-being should be positive among high-status groups and negative among low-status groups-mainly as a function of the existence of a unique motivation to justify the status quo. Given contradictory evidence in previous studies, we conducted a meta-analysis to test these ideas. Across 1,627 studies and 1,856,940 participants, we observed a meta-analytic association between endorsement of ideologies supporting the status quo and well-being of r = .07, p < .001. Nonetheless, we did not find evidence supportive of the moderator role of social status. These results provide partial evidence supporting the main tenets of system justification theory, and they are inconsistent with the idea of the existence of a unique motivation to justify the status quo. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Justification of an innovative system for the complete burial of solid, high-level radioactive waste (HLW) in spent open-pit mines

The object of research is the spent open-pit mines themselves where the proposed system could be applied. The primary reason for this studying is the following circumstance: up to the present time period, in all countries of the world, no methods of HLW disposal in a storage facility has been identified that is absolutely safe for any length of time, taking into account the impact of catastrophic natural emergencies and man-made emergencies. The research was conducted to address the problem of safely managing and storing HLW, leveraging the unique characteristics of spent open-pit mines, such as their large volume and geological stability, to prevent environmental contamination and ensure long-term safety. In the article has been justified a novel approach to the burial of sarcophagus containers with solid HLW in exhausted mining pits and studied the usabilities of the basalt sarcofagous container. Robust materials and advanced robotic systems proposed in the article aims to address the challenges associated with long-term radioactive waste disposal effectively. The robotic systems transfer the basalt container with HLW, ensuring personnel safety by minimizing human presence near radioactive materials. In the article have been established the distribution of temperature into the multi-layered composite structure of the basalt sarcophagous with HLW from 300 °C into the inner space to 50 °C onto on the its outer suffer where the thickness of each layers (from inner to outer radius) was respectively: for lead matrix: from r1=0.1 m to r2=0.2 m; for clay layer: from r2=0.2 m to r3=0.3 m; for basalt block: from r3=0.3 m to r4=0.4 m. The findings on temperature distribution are crucial as they directly affect the performance and longevity of the basalt containment system

Social workers’ support of the status quo: Results from a national survey

Summary Social work has an intimate and complex relationship with the systems that shape the social, political, economic, and environmental fabric of the United States. System justification theory helps explain why people are motivated to accept the status quo of systems and unequal social arrangements. This study examined the system-justifying beliefs of a national sample ( N = 516) of master’s-level social workers to better understand how beliefs about the status quo may shape job outcomes (e.g., burnout and satisfaction) and practice outcomes (e.g., goals, motivations, perceptions of clients, and endorsement of practice behaviors). Findings Ordinary least squares regression analyses adjusting for demographic characteristics indicated significant relationships with both practice outcomes and job outcomes. Higher system-justifying beliefs were associated with less social justice motivation, more practical motivation, less transformative practice goals, and less understanding of clients’ needs as symptoms of structural failures. However, higher system-justifying beliefs were also associated with more compassion satisfaction, less secondary trauma, and less emotional exhaustion. Applications Key interventions into the structural conditions of social work practice so that social workers rely less on system-justifying beliefs to cope with burnout and increase satisfaction are discussed. Examples include investments in support resources, workplace empowerment, increased discretion, and workload reduction. Cognitive and psychological interventions, specifically the development of critical consciousness and critical thinking, are also suggested.

Understanding destination information cocoons and polarization of travel attitude and intention: How can travel experiences mitigate bias?

Extant research remains relatively silent on the polarizing attitudes stemming from large-scale conflict events, such as trade wars. Information cocoons, which highlight unilateral information, have been shown to amplify polarized opinions and behaviors. This paper aims to integrate mixed methods with social identity, system justification, and cognitive dissonance theories across four interrelated studies to understand the impact of conflict events and subsequent information cocoons on tourist decision-making. Study 1 leverages the elastic net synthetic control method to compare the actual Chinese tourist travel to the US with a predicted counterfactual scenario without the trade war. Studies 2 through 5, with 300, 423, 517, and 201 respondents respectively, examined tourists’ competing reasonings and approach-avoidance tendencies regarding information cocoons about destinations involved in the trade war. The findings deepen our understanding of how information cocoons amplify polarized thinking and behaviors, which can be partially mitigated by travel experiences to conflicting countries.

Just-World Beliefs, System Justification, and Their Relationship with People's Health-Related Well-Being: A Narrative Review.

Beliefs about a social system help people understand and evaluate their environment and are related to their behavior within a society. When people believe that they live in a just social system and develop positive attitudes about the social and political environment, they experience greater satisfaction and well-being. This phenomenon is known as a palliative effect. Two theoretical approaches that explain support for social and political systems are the beliefs in a just world and system justification approaches. The objective of this review was to analyze the literature published between 2019 and 2023 that addressed the associations of beliefs in a just world and system justification with health-related well-being. The search yielded 2064 potentially eligible articles, 26 of which were ultimately selected. The results showed that beliefs in a just world are associated with a more positive perception of the world and better health outcomes. In addition, people with a greater propensity to justify the system experience higher levels of health-related well-being. This positive association is consistently observed across different social groups and contexts. These findings support the phenomenon of palliative effects attributable to beliefs in a just world and system justification.

Socioeconomic status self‐deception as a way to perpetuate classist societies

AbstractSocioeconomic status self‐deception refers to the motivated tendency to perceive oneself as having a higher subjective status than would correspond to objective conditions. This can be a powerful mechanism to legitimize the social order. We proposed that when people perceive the surrounding social environment to be classist, people tend to self‐deceive themselves by overestimating their socioeconomic status. This mechanism, in turn, would lead to justify the system to a higher extent and show less support for redistribution, and reduce relative deprivation and status anxiety. These hypotheses were tested across four pre‐registered studies on different high‐quality samples, different operationalization of the variables in our model, and both cross‐sectional and longitudinal observations. On the one hand, the results do not provide evidence of a link between perceiving a classist climate and socioeconomic status self‐deception. On the other hand, socioeconomic status self‐deception was confirmed to predict higher system justification, and lower support for redistribution, status anxiety and relative deprivation. The construct and operationalization of socioeconomic status self‐deception proposed in this research could help reconcile opposing predictions by system justification theory and social dominance theory, and understand why individuals low on socioeconomic status would oppose policies which could benefit them.

Culture, self, and politics: The effect of interdependent self‐construal on system justification

Culture, self, and politics: The effect of interdependent self‐construal on system justification

Psychology of Personal Political Engagement in Russia: Unpacking Perceived Community Culture, Pluralistic Ignorance, and System Justification

This study explores the relationship between Russian citizens’ self-reported political engagement and their system justification beliefs, perceptions of the system justification beliefs of other citizens, and perceptions of their community culture. We assessed personal political engagement through self-reported past behavior of 1,143 participants. The results revealed a negative relationship between individual personal system justification scores and political engagement. However, the analyses suggested that this relationship emerged because of pluralistic ignorance among the citizenry—their tendency to assume that others hold stronger system justification beliefs than they do. This possibility seemed especially likely among those who perceived themselves to inhabit vertical collectivist communities. These results suggest that beliefs about the system justification beliefs of others ( second-order beliefs) may shape personal system justification beliefs ( first-order beliefs). More generally, the findings emphasize the substantial role of cultural factors in political engagement in Russia.

One Family, Two Leisure Worlds: Analysis of Gender Order and Its Relationship to the “Leisure Gap” Between Mothers and Fathers

This study aimed to explore contextual factors influencing couples’ leisure practices and experiences through in-depth interviews with 15 Taiwanese heteronormative married couples. Findings suggested that despite Taiwanese women’s performance in the public sphere, husbands benefit from using work-family narratives and attendant gender order and practices as unconscious “social defenses” to rationalize leisure inequality generated by gender norms. When married women are under pressure to accept gender norms attached to wives or mothers, they reconfigure their understanding of gender roles to implicitly acknowledge male dominance in a “system justification” manner. In addition, they further redefine motherhood in the way they feel best fits their position in the family and curb their desire for personal leisure. Unequal gender relationships determine couples’ perceptions and patterns of leisure, which contributes, at least in part, to the persistence of leisure inequalities in the family environment.

A cross‐cultural test of competing hypotheses about system justification using data from 42 nations

AbstractSystem justification theory (SJT) is a thriving field of research, wherein the primary questions revolve around why individuals and groups are motivated to see the systems they depend on as just, fair, and legitimate. This article seeks to answer how accurate the postulates of SJT are when compared to competing self‐interest claims of social identity and social dominance theory. We addressed the ongoing debates among proponents of each theory by identifying who, when, and why individuals decide to system‐justify. We used data comprised of 24,009 participants nested within 42 countries. Multilevel models largely supported the competing claims of social dominance and social identity theories over SJT. The most robust findings were: (1) greater objective socioeconomic status (SES) was associated with greater system justification; (2) the consistent positive relationship between subjective SES and system justification was partially mediated by life satisfaction; and (3) both ends of the political spectrum were willing to system‐justify more when the political party they favored was in power. The results presented are used to discuss both the current state and the future directions for system justification research.

Validation of the Global Belief in a Just World Scale within the Spanish Population

The concept of justice, though inherently universal, is subject to substantial influence from social factors, affecting its perception. This study is dedicated to the adaptation and validation of an assessment tool for Global Belief in a Just World Scale (GBJWS) in the Spanish context. Our investigation delves into the relationship between Belief in a Just World and key constructs such as Social Dominance, System Justification, and Right-Wing Authoritarianism, while also addressing the dimension of potential gender disparities. Our findings demonstrate robust reliability coefficients, attesting to the scale's aptitude for assessing GBJW and exhibit highly favourable adjustment indices. Notably, our score analysis reveals elevated levels of BJW among men. This comprehensive research endeavour offers an invaluable global metric, facilitating transnational studies for understanding of justice perceptions on a global scale.

GIS-technologies and algorithm for developing regional systems for handling medical waste on the example of three regions

Introduction. GIS is a modern computer technology designed for collecting, storing, analyzing and visualizing spatial data – mapping. GIS is also actively used in healthcare to solve many regional problems, including optimization and management of healthcare resources. Over last decade, many researchers have used mathematical software models for healthcare waste management. A review of the literature shows facility location, risk to the public, and economic feasibility to be among the issues that have been extensively covered in the literature. Designing a reverse logistics network using mathematical software tools is an efficient and effective way to manage healthcare waste. The objective of the study. To determine the optimal approach to creating a functional model of a system for managing medical waste of class B and C using GIS-technologies for each of the three regions, based on the characteristics of each. Materials and methods. Medical institutions in three regions (St. Petersburg, Leningrad Region and Krasnoyarsk Territory) as sources of medical waste generation were considered taking into account their capacity and specialization. The composition and volumes of waste by class were determined using a calculation method based on indicative waste generation standards. The identification of local technologies for the neutralization of medical waste existing in medical institutions was carried out. The obtained data was processed statistically and displayed on electronic maps for subsequent use in GIS technologies, as well as for the development and justification of a waste management system for medical institutions, taking into account the prospects for the development of healthcare. Results. Based on the analysis of data on medical waste of classes B and C in individual medical institutions, as well as an analysis of the power of existing technologies for neutralizing this waste using GIS technologies, proposals were developed to improve the medical waste management system in three regions. The proposals are aimed at improving the sanitary and epidemiological situation in the regions over a five-year period and take into account the features of the existing transport infrastructure and the requirements of sanitary legislation. Limitations. The model of a medical waste management system using GIS technologies was used only for managing waste of classes B and C. Conclusion. To ensure the safe and environmentally sustainable functioning of the waste management system of classes B and C in the regions, it is necessary to apply an integrated approach based on GIS technologies. This approach should take into account the regional characteristics of the management of the medical waste disposal system and its economic feasibility and take into account the regional characteristics of transport logistics and the prospects for the development of healthcare.

Justification of the Administrative Public Interest Litigation System for Personal Information Protection

There is controversy over whether the public interest litigation clause in Article 70 of the Personal Information Protection Law includes administrative public interest litigation. However, in practice, the administrative public interest litigation mechanism focused on personal information protection has already been explored in the practice of prosecutorial public interest litigation. From a theoretical perspective, administrative public interest litigation for personal information protection has its institutional value, reflected in preventive value, equitable value, and compensatory value. From a normative perspective, the administrative public interest litigation system can be connected with the elements of the Personal Information Protection Law in terms of subject qualifications, application areas, initiation, and procedures. Article 70 of the Personal Information Protection Law reserves institutional space for the operation of the administrative public interest litigation mechanism, which can include the administrative public interest litigation system. From a practical perspective, it is necessary to demonstrate the practical necessity of administrative public interest litigation for personal information protection by organizing existing practices. The advantages of administrative public interest litigation can be significantly utilized in prosecutorial public interest litigation involving personal information protection, which helps to achieve the public interest governance goals of personal information protection.

Effects of system-sanctioned framing on climate awareness and environmental action in the United States and beyond

Despite growing scientific alarm about anthropogenic climate change, the world is not on track to solve the crisis. Inaction may be partially explained by skepticism about climate change and resistance to proenvironmental policies from people who are motivated to maintain the status quo (i.e., conservative-rightists). Therefore, practical interventions are needed. In the present research program, we tested an experimental manipulation derived from system justification theory in which proenvironmental initiatives were framed as patriotic and necessary to maintain the American “way of life.” In a large, nationally representative U.S. sample, we found that the system-sanctioned change intervention successfully increased liberal-leftists’ as well as conservative-rightists’ belief in climate change; support for proenvironmental policies; and willingness to share climate information on social media. Similar messages were effective in an aggregated analysis involving 63 countries, although the overall effect sizes were small. More granular exploratory analyses at the country level revealed that while the intervention was moderately successful in some countries (e.g., Brazil, France, Israel), it backfired in others (Germany, Belgium, Russia). Across the three outcome variables, the effects of the intervention were consistent and pronounced in the United States, in support of the hypothesis that system justification motivation can be harnessed on behalf of social change. Potential explanations for divergent country-level effects are discussed. The system-sanctioned change intervention holds considerable promise for policymakers and communicators seeking to increase climate awareness and action.

Temporal comparisons shape system justification processes

AbstractA central aspect of political conservatism is the notion that the system is fair. Political conservatives tend to defend the system more than do liberals. Here we test whether the link between political orientation and this system justification tendency depends on the comparisons people make across time. Across five studies, we found that the typically observed link between conservative (vs. liberal) political orientation and system justification is only observed when no temporal comparisons are made, or when the status quo is compared to a future alternative. However, this association is not observed when the status quo is compared to the past. Instead, when comparing the present to the past, the link between political orientation and system justification was blocked (Studies 1, 2, and 4) or even reversed (Study 3). Theoretically, these results connect the system justification literature to literature on temporal comparison and suggest that system justification is meaningfully influenced by comparisons processes.

Riot Like a Girl? Gender-Stereotypical Associations Boost Support for Feminist Online Campaigns

The current study examined whether congruence with gender stereotypes is associated with support for online feminist campaigns. In Study 1 (Ntweets = 510,000), we investigated how two real-world movements (i.e., #metoo and #sexstrike) were viewed in terms of adhering to the traditional feminine stereotype of high warmth/communion and low competence/agency, as per language used in the tweets posted within each campaign. We found that the #metoo movement was characterised by more communal and less agentic content than #sexstrike. In Study 2 (N = 195), when presented with descriptions of the movements modelled after #metoo and #sexstrike, participants associated the #metoo-like campaign with more feminine (e.g., community orientation) and less masculine concepts (e.g., rebelliousness), which, in turn, translated to greater declared support for the campaign. In Study 3 (N = 446), conducted in a more controlled and context-independent setting, we once again observed the link between the gender stereotypes attached to feminist movements and the support they received. We also found that this effect was independent of the effect of perceiving movements as violating social norms. Controlling for feminist identification, political conservatism, and gender system justification did not affect the pattern of results. Uncovering these stereotype-related effects on support for feminist movements furthers understanding of the strategies that might be used in the fight for gender equality.

Further evidence that system justification decreases among extreme conservatives and the role of national populism

AbstractThis article replicates and extends previous results indicating that system justification, in a pool of non‐American samples, decreases at the extremes of the political continuum. Data came from 29 European countries enrolled in nine rounds of the European Social Survey from 2002 to 2018. Results indicated that right‐wingers were more likely to support the existing social system than left‐wingers. However, a significant and negative quadratic effect emerged indicating that system justification decreased among extremists in both left and right‐leaning poles. Findings also revealed that the level of national populist voting moderated the relationship between political orientation and system justification so that the difference between extreme leftists and extreme rightists was further reduced when national populist voting was higher. Results seem to confirm that extremists can be critical of the existing social system and that this trend is affected by the level of the rise in populism in those countries. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement.

Emerging Economies: An Investigation of National Culture and Sustainable Development

The current study highlights the significance of national culture in advocating sustainable development, aligning with the goals outlined in the 2030 Agenda. It draws upon theories from various perspectives, including Classical Marxism, System Justification, Weber and the Ethic of Protestantism, and Postmaterialism. By examining the relationship between national culture and sustainable development, particularly in emerging economies, it addresses a gap in existing discourse. Using data from The Culture Factor Group website and the Global Sustainable Competitiveness Index provided by Solability in 2023, this study investigates how six of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions relate to the sustainable competitiveness of emerging economies. The findings, based on a sample of 21 emerging economies sourced from diverse online platforms, indicate a significant relationship between national culture and sustainable development, particularly in terms of sustainable competitiveness. This study underscores the importance of recognizing culture as a key factor in achieving sustainable development goals, supporting its inclusion as a fundamental aspect in shaping policies and strategies aimed at fostering sustainable development in emerging economies.

Countering Search Ad Avoidance: How Political Orientation Affects Trust in Search Advertising

Search advertising involves the purchasing of an ad’s position at the top of a search engine results page and accounts for more than 40% of all digital ad spending in the United States. Nevertheless, consumers are more likely to click on organic links found below search ads—a phenomenon referred to as the search ad avoidance effect. Combining system justification and construal level theory, a politically identifiable segment of consumers is argued to counter this effect. Because individuals with a conservative (vs. liberal) political orientation tend to justify systemic processes, they are more likely to trust sponsored versus organic marketing communications. Across four studies (secondary data, surveys, online field experiment), conservatives (vs. liberals) are more likely to click on search ads because they perceive them as more trustworthy. This relationship is most prevalent when consumers conduct broad searches, activating an abstract search construal that relies on a thinking style consistent with one’s core ideological beliefs and values. However, both conservatives and liberals are equally likely to click on search ads when they conduct more specific searches, activating a concrete search construal that enables a thinking style that is context-dependent and therefore diverges from one’s core beliefs and values.

Connecting gender role attitudes among China’s youth to perceptions of the state: a bottom-up approach

The present study examines the gender–state dynamics in the Chinese context through a bottom-up approach by adopting an online survey method. We find four indicators, which are male priority, child suffering, gender ideology, marriage and fertility, could reflect one common factor—gender egalitarianism, and we utilize this scale to measure gender role attitudes among China’s youth, as well as explore their psycho-political antecedents including system justification theory, national identification, and life satisfaction. The survey findings suggest a close interconnection between the construction of family and nation. The study’s outcomes offer valuable insights into the ongoing progress and challenges relating to gender equality as perceived by young people in China. Furthermore, these findings establish a refined measurement instrument for future empirical studies in this domain.