IMBALANCED STRUCTURES, UNFAIR STRATEGIES - POWER AND JUSTICE IN SOCIAL-EXCHANGE

We investigate how the balance of power in exchange relations affects actors' perceptions of the fairness of their partners' power strategies. If justice is in the eye of the beholder as virtually all social psychological theories of justice assume, does its subjective nature work to the advantage of the powerful or the weak? Alternative perspectives on justice and power suggest competing hypotheses. One view proposes that norms of justice support and legitimate behavioral inequalities that favor the powerful; the second view argues that noms of justice counter and oppose the effects of power Using an experimental design that allows us to manipulate structural power and behavioral strategies independently, we test hypotheses derived from these competing theories in relations of direct, nonnegotiated exchange. We find no evidence for an opposing effect of justice and substantial support for a legitimating effect. Most significantly, punishment strategies are perceived as more fair when used by exchange partners who are advantaged on reward power than when used by disadvantaged partners.