World Beliefs Research Articles

Brazilian Adolescents’ Just World Beliefs and Its Relationships with School Fairness, Student Conduct, and Legal Authorities

Prior research has demonstrated that adolescence is a sensitive period to develop their belief in a just world (BJW), both general and personal. Research has found significant relationships between BJW, perceptions of school fairness, student conduct, and perceptions of legal authorities. However, no research has combined these constructs in one model to get a broader picture of how adolescents construct their worldview of fairness and how this influences their compliance with authorities. This study analyzed 475 Brazilian adolescents across three schools. A partially mediated and a mediated model were tested to determine if students’ BJW relate directly or indirectly to student conduct and perceptions of legal authorities through school fairness. The partially mediated model best fit the data. Personal BJW predicted students’ perceptions of the school fairness, which predicted student conduct. General BJW and school fairness predicted adolescents’ perceptions of legal authorities. Perceptions of school fairness are influenced by Personal BJW and are predictive of students’ conduct and opinions of legal authorities. By analyzing multiple constructs simultaneously, this study provides a picture of how these overlapping conceptualizations of justice interact. Students who do not believe their school is fair are less likely to respect and abide by the rules and are more likely to also expect unfair treatment from law enforcement and judicial officials. This study points to the importance of students’ perceptions of justice at school and highlights the far-reaching implications of students who do not perceive or expect justice in their lives.

Just World Belief and Ethics of Morality: When Do We Derogate the Victim?

The current study aimed to explore the influences of moral emotions, moral ethics and perceptions of the perpetrator on the phenomenon of victim derogation. Based on the assumptions of Lerner’s Just World Belief theory (JWB; Lerner 2002) and Shweder’s “Big Three” ethics theory (Shweder et al. 1997), levels of victim derogation and avoidance in response to vignettes were analyzed as a function of moral content (ethic) and emotions, as well as good or bad outcome and perceptions of the perpetrator. Study 1 examined the influence of moral contents and outcome on moral emotions, finding that disgust is salient in violation of the divinity ethic whereas anger is salient in the autonomy ethic, and that anger is more dependent on outcome than disgust. Study 2 analyzed the influence of moral content, outcome, and perceptions of the perpetrator on victim perception. Results showed that the victim in the divinity context is perceived as more morally positive regardless of the outcome, but is avoided more. Also, negative perception of the perpetrator contributes more to positive perception of the victim in the divinity ethic than in the autonomy ethic. Perception of the victim in the autonomy ethic is affected more by outcome, and, in line with the JWB hypothesis, is derogated more when the outcome is negative. The fundamental motivation of justice was shown to be related to the link between act and outcome, but to vary by moral content. Derogation of the victim as a defense of JWB appears to be a typical reaction to injustice in the autonomy ethic, while avoidance of the victim may characterize violations of the divinity ethic.

The Relationship Between Personality and Schadenfreude in Hypothetical Versus Live Situations.

This study sought to investigate how individual differences are related to schadenfreude (pleasure derived from another's misfortune) by replicating past findings and extending them to additional personality traits. Because most past research on schadenfreude has relied heavily on the use of reactions to hypothetical scenarios, an attempt was made to demonstrate external validity by also including a reaction to a live event (confederate misfortune). For the scenarios, schadenfreude was positively correlated with the Dark Triad and just world beliefs; negatively correlated with empathy and agreeableness; and uncorrelated with dispositional envy, self-esteem, or the remaining Big Five traits. For the live event, no personality traits were correlated with schadenfreude, suggesting responses to hypothetical situations may not be representative of real-life schadenfreude events.

Rape myth acceptance, victim blame attribution and Just World Beliefs: A rapid evidence assessment

Abstract Background Rape is underreported, potentially because individuals self-blame and/or are blamed by others. Research predominantly illustrates male-perpetrated stranger-rape of females; thus, there may be a perception that rape myth acceptance (RMA) and victim-blaming are most prevalent in males. The purpose of this rapid evidence assessment was to investigate the availability of high-quality research into the effects of Just World Beliefs, perpetrator/victim gender, and stranger- and acquaintance/marital-rape scenarios on victim-blaming and RMA. Methods Several electronic databases were searched for empirical papers using terms including: ‘ victim blame ’, ‘ rape myth acceptance ’, ‘ Just World Beliefs ’, ‘ type of rape ’ and ‘ gender ’. Gough's (2007) weight of evidence framework was used to assess quality prior to inclusion. Findings Studies retained after filtering and quality assessment suggested that RMA was predictive of victim-blaming with both male and female ‘victims’. Rape myth acceptance is more prevalent in males even in male ‘victim’ scenarios, and Just World Belief was positively associated with RMA. Greater victim-blaming was attributed in stranger- vs. acquaintance-rape scenarios. Discussion There are no absolute conclusions regarding the role of gender or situational factors and rape-supportive/victim-blaming attitudes. Further empirical research is required to understand the prevalence of RMA in perceptions of marital rape and, particularly, homosexual marital rape.

Women’s dangerous world beliefs predict more accurate discrimination of affiliative facial cues.

Women’s dangerous world beliefs predict more accurate discrimination of affiliative facial cues.

Impact of the threat of just world beliefs on criminal case perception

Impact of the threat of just world beliefs on criminal case perception

Understanding Gender Differences in Rape Victim Blaming: The Power of Social Influence and Just World Beliefs.

Victims of sexual violence are frequently blamed by friends, family, or legal personnel in the aftermath of an attack, with men attributing greater blame on average than women. Victims' experiences of being blamed may generate a vicious cycle in which they are more likely to be blamed in the future. Moreover, just world beliefs (JWB) have been studied extensively as an underlying cognitive mechanism that predicts greater blame. Studies examining the influence of social support on blame have yet to examine the unique role of JWB on these attributions. The current study examined blame attribution of a fictional rape victim who received either positive, negative, or neutral support from friends and family in a sample of 383 undergraduate men and women. Individually, social support and JWB were both significant predictors of blame, and women were more influenced by social support than men; specifically, gender was a more salient predictor of blame toward the positively supported victim, suggesting that positive support received by friends and family may evoke a domino effect of support from other women. Conditional effects revealed that JWB were most influential on blame when responding to the positively supported victim. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Blame Attributions in Multiple Perpetrator Rape Cases: The Impact of Sympathy, Consent, Force, and Beliefs.

Victims of multiple perpetrator rape (MPR) have been found to be an especially vulnerable group. This study examined effects of MPR and perpetrators' use of force on attributions of victim and perpetrator blame. In two large experiments (total N = 2,928), Swedish community members read scenarios depicting an MPR and subsequently made several ratings of blame, rape myth acceptance (RMA), just world beliefs, sympathy for the victim, perception of consent, and trust in the legal system. Data were analyzed with a multianalytical approach using both analyses of variance as well as exploratory analyses. In Experiment 1, more blame was attributed to a victim of MPR than a victim of a lone perpetrator rape (LPR). In Experiment 2, no effect of used force was found on levels of attributed blame. In both experiments, hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that four components, identified through principal components analyses, explained substantial shares of the variance in both victim and perpetrator blame. The best individual predictors were participants' perception of consent, sympathy for the victim, and RMA. The study shows the importance of studying participants' beliefs and attitudes about rape and that victim-blaming research needs both theory development and greater methodological awareness. Implications for victim support services are also discussed.

Justice organisationnelle et croyance en un monde juste : perceptions et réactions des dirigeants d’entreprise vis-à-vis de leurs managers (in)justes

Introduction and objectivesFew studies analyzed the reactions of a company head according to the degree of organizational justice adopted by his managers towards their subordinates. Similarly, the links between organizational justice and belief in a just world have rarely been studied. The aim of this research is to examine whether the three dimensions of organizational justice implemented by a manager have role of supervisor who had to value a manager who adopted, on each of the three dimensions of organizational justice, a just vs. unjust conduct. Participants were also asked about their belief in a just world an impact on the perceptions and reactions of the supervisor of the manager, and if the degree of belief in a just world mediates these perceptions and reactions. MethodIn terms of method, 410 men and women with a professional activity held the role of supervisor who had to value a manager who adopted, on each of the three dimensions of organizational justice, a just vs. unjust conduct. Participants were also asked about their belief in a just world, with a differentiation between personal belief in a just world versus belief in a just world to others. ResultsThe results show main effects and interaction effects between the three forms of justice on the manager's perception score, intends to award him a bonus, and the amount of assigned bonus. The results also indicate an influence of the degree of personal just world belief on the evaluation of the manager, but without interaction between just world belief and the dimensions of organizational justice. ConclusionsThe conclusion summarizes the main findings, examines their limits and deals with their theoretical and practical implications.

How do social beliefs affect political action motivation? The cases of Russia and Ukraine

Political action is one of the main methods of social change. Previous research has shown that readiness to participate in such actions is determined by an evaluation of the current situation. The question arises as to how stable beliefs influence such evaluations. In this study we have analyzed the link between such beliefs and readiness to participate in political actions. We assumed that just and dangerous world beliefs are factors that influence readiness to participate in political actions. However, these factors’ influence is mediated by political efficacy. Respondents from Russia ( N = 440) and Ukraine ( N = 249) participated in our study. Structural equation modeling partly confirmed the hypotheses. It has shown that the more people believe in a just world and the less they believe in a dangerous world, the higher their internal and external political efficacy is. Political efficacy, in turn, predicts readiness to participate in various forms of political action. Internal political efficacy is positively linked to normative political collective actions, while external political efficacy is negatively linked to nonnormative collective actions. However, the extent of these patterns is dependent on cultural context.

Facing the implications: Dangerous world beliefs differentially predict men and women's aversion to facially communicated psychopathy

Individuals with heightened self-protection motives demonstrate considerable perceptual acuity toward facial features connoting others' cooperative intentions, an adaptive response to mitigate vulnerability to exploitation. This sensitivity may necessarily also produce an aversion to individuals exhibiting facial features implicating them as interpersonal threats. Previous research indicates humans possess considerable accuracy at identifying psychopathy through facial features, which may suggest that individuals with heightened self-protection concerns may be particularly averse to facially communicated psychopathy. In the current study, participants reported interaction partner preferences among face pairs that were manipulated to communicate high and low levels of psychopathy. Participants then reported their dispositional belief in a dangerous world. Women with dispositionally higher dangerous world beliefs reported a stronger aversion to facially communicated high-psychopathy. Conversely, men higher in dangerous world beliefs reported reduced aversion to high psychopathy targets. Men's aversion down-regulation may be indicative of tolerance for antisocial conspecifics to facilitate action against coalitional threat. Results indicate that self-protection motives differentially predict men and women's relative aversion to psychopathy in adaptive ways.

From fear and guilt: negative perceptions of Ashley Madison users

ABSTRACTA common cultural norm in committed relationships is that of sexual exclusiveness. When this norm is violated, those involved are often perceived negatively. Recently, a website facilitating extradyadic relationships, AshleyMadison.com (AM), was hacked, and the personal information of the members was illegally disseminated. As a result of the large amount of accompanying media coverage, AM users have been negatively perceived and even openly mocked. The current study explored potential predictors for the negative perceptions (i.e. demonisation) of AM users using a large online sample. In a predominantly exploratory study, myriad variables were examined from both outside (e.g. just world belief) and inside the psychosexual (e.g. sociosexuality) literature. The findings indicate that the predictors of jealousy and sexual guilt both positively predict demonisation of AM users, above and beyond the other individual difference variables.

Explaining doxastic transparency: aim, norm, or function?

I argue that explanations of doxastic transparency which go via an appeal to an aim or norm of belief are problematic. I offer a new explanation which appeals to a biological function of our mechanisms for belief production. I begin by characterizing the phenomenon, and then move to the teleological and normative accounts of belief, advertised by their proponents as able to give an explanation of it. I argue that, at the very least, both accounts face serious difficulties in this endeavour. These difficulties are a function of seeking an explanation of transparency at the agential level, either with the subject aiming at truth, or being guided by a norm of truth. I adopt a motivational account of belief, one which severs the connection between belief and truth, and supplement this with an account of actual world beliefs. My alternative explanation is found at the sub-intentional, non-agential level, secured by biology. This explanation casts transparency not as related to the nature of deliberation over what to believe, but rather as contingently characterizing the beliefs of some believers, namely those with a particular biological history. My explanation thus parts company with what has come before along two dimensions: it moves away from transparency being something related to the agent’s aims or commitments, and it understands it as a contingent phenomenon. I close by considering an objection to my view—that transparency must not be understood as a contingent phenomenon—and a nearby alternative position which avoids this consequence. I respond to this objection and give reasons not to endorse the nearby alternative. I conclude that my explanation does not face the difficulties of those offered by teleologists and normativists, and, that by moving away from agential explanations, and casting transparency as contingent, we can provide a successful explanation of it.

Attitudes toward victim and victimization in the light of the just world theory

The present paper discusses current empirical status of the Just world theory introduced several decades ago by Melvin Lerner, the content and functions of a just world belief as its central construct, and particularly, the relation between a just world belief and victim blaming and victim derogation phenomena. In the light of existing research evidence, a just world belief and a need to re-establish a ?justice? when this belief is threatened, is considered to be an adaptive mechanism that protect a belief that a world is secure and the future is predictable, as well as a confidence in the purposefulness of selfdiscipline, long-term personal investments and social rules respecting. As proposed By the just world theory, when a person faces injustice, i.e. others? (innocent victims?) suffering, his/her belief in a just world is threatened. Possible reactions to that threat comprise various rational victim helping activities, but also specific cognitive defensive strategies, including cognitive distortion, rationalization and reinterpretation of an event in order to minimize injustice or deny injustice happened at all. In the course of reinterpretation of injustice, victims are often blamed for their former actions, or derogated for their character, in order to indicate them responsible for their own fate and suffering. The findings of research studies suggest that the likelihood of employing cognitive defensive strategies rises if formal responses to crime and victimization lack or fail. This further suggests that an efficient and effective formal social response in terms of both sanctioning of offenders and reparation of victims should be considered highly important in reducing the risk of stigmatization and rejection of victims. Finally, the paper discusses the role of victim?s just world beliefs in post-trauma adaptation and coping processes. In virtue of findings from the existing research literature it may be concluded that victim?s belief in a just world is not necessarily obstructive for the adaptation and coping process. Moreover, in the research literature prevail findings telling in support of an assertion that strong just world belief serves significantly as a self-protective function.

Mother Blame and the Just World Theory in Child Sexual Abuse Cases.

Mothers are blamed for a variety of negative experiences and outcomes of their children, including child sexual abuse (CSA). According to just world hypothesis (JWH), people have a need to view the world as one where there is no such thing as an innocent victim; that is, the world is fair and just. These beliefs predict victim blaming in situations such as sexual abuse, physical abuse, and robbery. However, JWH has not been applied to the examination of mother blame, a situation in which the blame target did not directly experience the traumatic event. We examined this application in two studies: (a) a thematic analysis of focus group discussions and (b) a correlational study. Across both studies, participants identified personal characteristics of the mother that either increased or decreased blame, consistent with JWH. However, when directly asked, most participants denied holding just world beliefs, particularly as related to child sexual abuse. Our results indicate that methodological choices might affect results, and that socially constructed views of "ideal mothers" influence mother blame. We discuss implications for validity of just world theory (JWT), methodological choices, and reduction of mother blame.

A cross-cultural comparison of Turkish and Kyrgyz students’ belief in a just world

The purpose of this study is to compare Turkish and Kyrgyz students on their just world beliefs. One hundred and four Turkish and one hundred twenty Kyrgyz undergraduates participated in the study. The data was collected using the 13-item Just World Beliefs Scales by Dalbert (1999). To examine the differences a 2 (country) x 2 (sex) multivariate factorial analysis of variance was carried out. The results revealed that there were significant gender and country differences between the Turkish and Kyrgyz students’ general just world beliefs and personal just world beliefs. Also, the results showed that male students had a stronger just world beliefs than the female students and the Kyrgyz students had higher scores in the just world beliefs in comparison to the Turkish students.

Anti-transgender prejudice mediates the association of just world beliefs and victim blame attribution

ABSTRACTSeveral decades of research have found that just world beliefs (BJW) predict the blaming of innocent victims and are associated with various forms of prejudice. We tested whether anti-transgender prejudice (a) uniquely predicts victim blame for a victim perceived to be of transgender spectrum experience (or trans*), apart from BJW, and (b) whether anti-transgender prejudice is a mediator of the association between BJW and victim blame. U.S. participants (N = 311) read a hypothetical crime vignette in which the victim was either perceived to be trans* by perpetrators or not, then completed measures of victim blame, BJW, and anti-transgender prejudice. In a multiple linear regression analysis, anti-transgender prejudice and the interactions of vignette with BJW and with anti-transgender prejudice were significant predictors of victim blame. There was no independent main effect for BJW, gender, or vignette. BJW was associated with victim blame only for the trans* victim. Anti-transgender prejudice was associated with victim blame for both vignettes; however, this relationship was stronger for the trans* victim. Further, anti-transgender prejudice fully mediated the relation between BJW and victim blame in both conditions. Findings suggest that anti-transgender prejudice uniquely predicts victim blaming, even for innocent victims who are not perceived to be trans*.

Educational privilege: The role of school context in the development just world beliefs among Brazilian adolescents.

The purpose of this study is to understand the development of Brazilian adolescents' justice perceptions across different contexts of educational privilege. Past research has found that, in adolescence, the belief in a just world (BJW) differentiates between personal and general and declines. However, prior research has not included adolescents from various socioeconomic statuses, samples in Latin America, or focused on the role of the educational context on the developmental trajectory. Participants were 385 adolescents from 3 schools (private, public and military) in Southern Brazil between 9th and 11th grade. Students completed the personal and general BJW survey. Results revealed a significant interaction of school and grade level of adolescents' personal BJW. Contrary to previous research, personal and general BJW was not always lower in higher grades. Among privileged educational contexts, data indicated that personal BJW may even increase, with the decrease notable in the lower resourced school. In contrast, general BJW was relatively consistent across all Brazilian adolescents. Results provide important insight into the role that privilege and education play across adolescents' development of BJW. This research questions the generalizability of previous studies on the development of BJW and indicates that the trajectory may be dependent upon educational and cultural context.

Public Perspectives on Expanding Naloxone Access to Reverse Opioid Overdoses

ABSTRACTBackground: Opioid overdoses can often be reversed with naloxone hydrochloride. Past studies on attitudes toward expanded naloxone access have surveyed drug users, family members, and providers. Objectives: To explore how the general public perceives take-home or nonmedical first-responder access to naloxone to reverse opioid overdoses. Additionally, little is known about how support for expanded access is related to participant's endorsement of Individualism and Just World Belief—colloquially people getting what they deserve and deserving what they get. Methods: Lay participants completed an online survey examining concerns with and support for expanding naloxone access. Just World Belief, Individualism, and participants' dependence history were also measured. Four different hypothetical situations were considered, varying according to type of opioid (heroin versus nonmedical prescription opioid) and recipient (suburban middle class versus recent parolee). Results: Most participants agreed with at least some degree of expanded access. Analyses of variance indicated that type of opioid or recipient did not affect attitudes toward expansion. Pearson correlations and multiple regressions revealed that endorsement of Just World Beliefs and Individualism were associated with greater concerns with and less support for expansion. Importance: While there is general agreement with some degree of expanding naloxone access, participants' level of endorsement was influenced by their level of individualism and belief in a just world. These factors need to be considered in how to best frame messages to maximize layperson support for expansion.

When and Why We See Victims as Responsible

Why do victims sometimes receive sympathy for their suffering and at other times scorn and blame? Here we show a powerful role for moral values in attitudes toward victims. We measured moral values associated with unconditionally prohibiting harm ("individualizing values") versus moral values associated with prohibiting behavior that destabilizes groups and relationships ("binding values": loyalty, obedience to authority, and purity). Increased endorsement of binding values predicted increased ratings of victims as contaminated (Studies 1-4); increased blame and responsibility attributed to victims, increased perceptions of victims' (versus perpetrators') behaviors as contributing to the outcome, and decreased focus on perpetrators (Studies 2-3). Patterns persisted controlling for politics, just world beliefs, and right-wing authoritarianism. Experimentally manipulating linguistic focus off of victims and onto perpetrators reduced victim blame. Both binding values and focus modulated victim blame through victim responsibility attributions. Findings indicate the important role of ideology in attitudes toward victims via effects on responsibility attribution.