Abstract
Equity theory (Adams, 1965; Walster, Berscheid, & Walster, 1973) seems to have outlived its usefulness. Can it—should it—be revised or recon-ceptualized? This chapter argues that there is a basis for rethinking equity theory and that such an enterprise is a worthwhile precursor to further research on the psychology of injustice.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams, J. S. (1965). Inequity in social exchange. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 2, pp. 267–299). New York: Academic Press.
Alexander, S., & Ruderman, M. (1983, August). The influence of procedural and distributive justice on organizational behavior. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, Anaheim, CA.
Austin, W., & Susmilch, C. (1974). Comment on Lane and Messé’s confusing clarification of equity theory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 30, 400–404.
Austin, W., McGinn, N. C., & Susmilch, C. (1980). Internal standards revisited: Effects of social comparisons and expectancies on judgments of fairness and satisfaction. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 16, 426–441.
Bies, R. J. (in press). The predicament of organizational injustice: Interpersonal and affective processes. In B. ML Staw & L. L. Cummings (Eds.), Research in organizational behavior (Vol. 9). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Crosby, F. (1976). A model of egoistical relative deprivation. Psychological Review, 83, 85–113.
Deutsch, M. (1975). Equity, equality and need: What determines which value will be used as the basis for distributive justice? Journal of Social Issues, 31, 137–149.
Fine, M. (1979). Options to injustice: Seeing other lights. Representative Research in Social Psychology, 10, 61–76.
Fiske, S., & Taylor, S. E. (1984). Social cognition. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Folger, R. (1977). Distributive and procedural justice: Combined impact of “voice” and improvement on experienced inequity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 35, 108–119.
Folger, R. (1984a). Emerging issues in the social psychology of justice. In R. Folger (Ed.), The sense of injustice: Social psychological perspectives (pp. 3–24). New York: Plenum Press.
Folger, R. (1984b). Perceived injustice, referent cognitions, and the concept of comparison level. Representative Research in Social Psychology, 14, 88–108.
Folger, R. (1986). A referent cognitions theory of relative deprivation. In J. M. Olson, C. P. Herman, & M. P. Zanna (Eds.), Relative deprivation and social comparison: The Ontario symposium (Vol. 4, pp. 33–55). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Folger, R. (in press). Relative deprivation and referent cognitions: Reformulating the preconditions of resentment. In J. C. Masters & W. P. Smith (Eds.), Social comparison, relative deprivation, and social justice: Theoretical, empirical, and policy perspectives. New York: Plenum Press.
Folger, R., & Greenberg, J. (1985). Procedural justice: An interpretive analysis of personnel systems. In K. Rowland & G. Ferris (Eds.), Research in personnel and human resources management (Vol. 3, pp. 141–183). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Folger, R., & Martin, C. (1985). Relative deprivation and referent cognitions: Distributive and procedural justice effects. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Folger, R., Rosenfield, D., & Rheaume, K. (1983). Roleplaying effects of likelihood and referent outcomes on relative deprivation. Representative Research in Social Psychology, 13, 2–10.
Folger, R., Rosenfield, D., Rheaume, K., & Martin, C. (1983). Relative deprivation and referent cognitions. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 19, 172–184.
Folger, R., Rosenfield, D., & Robinson, T. (1983). Relative deprivation and procedural justification. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45, 268–273.
Furby, L. (1986). Psychology and justice. In R. L. Cohen (Ed.), Justice: Views from the social sciences. New York: Plenum Press.
Hirschman, A. O. (1970). Exit, voice and loyalty: Responses to declines in firms, organizations, and states. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1982). Availability and the simulation heuristic. In D. Kahneman, P. Slovic, & A. Tversky (Ed.), Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases (pp. 201–208). New York: Oxford University Press.
Lane, I. M., & Messé, L. A. (1972). Distribution of insufficient, sufficient, and oversufficient rewards: A clarification of equity theory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 31, 228–233.
Lerner, M. J. (1974). Social psychology of justice and interpersonal attraction. In T. L. Huston (Ed.), Foundations of interpersonal attraction (pp. 331–351). New York: Academic Press.
Leventhal, G. S. (1976). Fairness in social relationships. In J. W. Thibaut, J. T. Spence, & R. C. Carson (Eds.), Contemporary topics in social psychology (pp. 211–239). Morris-town, NJ: General Learning Press.
Leventhal, G. S. (1980). What should be done with equity theory? In K. J. Gergen, M. S. Greenberg, & R. H. Willis (Eds.), Social exchange; Advances in theory and research (pp. 27–55). New York: Plenum Press.
Mark, M. M., & Cook, T. D. (1979). Relative deprivation: When does it lead to anger, achievement, or disengagement? Alternatives: Perspectives on Society and Environment, 8, 13–17.
Mark, M. M., & Folger, R. (1984). Responses to relative deprivation: A conceptual framework. Review of Personality and Social Psychology, 5, 192–218.
Messé, L. A., & Lane, L M. (1974). Rediscovering the need for multiple operations: A reply to Austin and Susmilch. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 30, 405–408.
Messé, L. A., & Watts, B. L. (1983). Complex nature of the sense of fairness: Internal standards and social comparison as bases for reward evaluation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45, 84–93.
Miner, J.B. (1984, February). The unpaved road over the mountains: From theory to applications. The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 21(2), 9–20.
Pritchard, R. D. (1969). Equity theory: A review and critique. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 4, 176–211.
Reis, H. T. (1984). The multidimensionality of justice. In R. Folger (Ed.), The sense of injustice: Social psychological perspectives (pp. 25–61). New York: Plenum Press.
Thibaut, J. W., & Walker, L. (1975). Procedural justice: A psychological analysis. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Thibaut, J. W., & Walker, L. (1978). A theory of procedure. California Law Review, 66, 541–566.
Tyler, T. R. (1984). The role of perceived injustice in defendants’ evaluations of their courtroom experience. Law and Society Review, 18, 101–124.
Tyler, T. R., & Caine, A. (1981). The influence of outcomes and procedures upon satisfaction with formal leaders. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 41, 642–655.
Tyler, T. R., & Folger, R. (1980). Distributive and procedural aspects of satisfaction with citizen-police encounters. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 1, 281–292.
Tyler, T. R., Rasinski, K., & Spodick, N. (1985). Influence of voice on satisfaction with leaders: Exploring the meaning of process control. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 72–81.
Walster, E., Berscheid, E., & Walster, G. W. (1973). New directions in equity research. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 25, 151–176.
Weick, K. E. (1966). The concept of equity in the perception of pay. Administrative Science Quarterly, 11, 414–439.
Weick, K. E., & Nesset, B. (1968). Preferences among forms of equity. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 3, 400–416.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1986 Plenum Press, New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Folger, R. (1986). Rethinking Equity Theory. In: Bierhoff, H.W., Cohen, R.L., Greenberg, J. (eds) Justice in Social Relations. Critical Issues in Social Justice. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5059-0_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5059-0_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4684-5061-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-5059-0
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive