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Cited by 308Social and Intergroup PsychologySocial Power and Status DynamicsDeath Anxiety and Social Exclusion

A Theory of System Justification

JOST, JOHN T.·2020·Harvard University Press eBooks
DOI 10.2307/j.ctv13qfw6w
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Abstract

Psychologist John Jost has spent decades researching poor people who vote for policies of inequality and women who think men deserve higher salaries. He argues that the persecuted often justify and defend the very social systems that oppress them because doing so serves a fundamental need for certainty, security, and social acceptance.

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Crossref · 10.2307/j.ctv13qfw6w

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  • System justification can contribute to behaviors that support democratic erosion.

    “One characteristic that can contribute to such behaviors is system justification.”

    From How to study democratic backsliding (2024) · cites this paper as Jost, 2020

  • Those with high social-justification tendencies often rationalize an undemocratic erosion of the extant system.

    “Those with high social-justification tendencies often rationalize an undemocratic erosion of the extant system.”

    From How to study democratic backsliding (2024) · cites this paper as Jost, 2020

  • People defend the status quo even if it is unjust and exploitative due to a need for certainty, security, and social acceptance.

    “People defend the status quo even if it is unjust and exploitative due to a need for certainty, security, and social acceptance.”

    From How to study democratic backsliding (2024) · cites this paper as Jost, 2020

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Authors
JOST, J. T.
Corresponding author
JOST, JOHN T.
ORCID
JOST, JOHN T.
Venue
Harvard University Press eBooks
Publisher
Harvard University Press
Published
2020-07-14
DOI
10.2307/j.ctv13qfw6w
OpenAlex
W3038554755
Cited by
308
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 32 · 2025: 71 · 2024: 62 · 2023: 57 · 2022: 49 · 2021: 28 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1
FWCI
40.05
Type
book
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
Harvard University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social Power and Status Dynamics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
Keywords
system justification theory, social inequality, oppression, certainty, social acceptance, political attitudes, gender pay gap

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