Preferential selection and outcome justice: Effects of justification and merit discrepancy

In applying the relative deprivation theory to preferential selection research, Singer (1991) used a within-subjects design and showed that ethnicity-based selection induced feelings of injustice among the disadvantaged target group, the Europeans; and that the level of felt injustice could be predicted by the discrepancy in merits between the successful minority candidate and the rejected European candidate. This study aimed to cross-validate the findings with a between-subjects design, and to ascertain whether the provision of either an ideological or a causal justification would reduce feelings of injustice. The results replicated previous findings and further showed that either type of justification exacerbated perceptions of injustice among European respondents, but it had no effect on fairness perceptions of Asian subjects. The theoretical implications of the results were discussed.