Abstract
The perceptions of 460 Finnish forest owners regarding national forest policy were examined with a questionnaire measuring
institutional legitimacy, procedural justice, perceived uncertainty, and satisfaction with decisions. Research hypotheses,
which were derived from the group-value theory and the system justification theory, were tested. The results showed that high
institutional legitimacy reduced the effect of procedural justice on the satisfaction with political decisions. Procedural
justice predicted the acceptance of decisions only when institutional legitimacy was low. Moreover, perceived uncertainty
increased the perception of legitimacy. The implications of these findings for a social psychological theory of legitimacy
and policymaking are briefly discussed.
institutional legitimacy, procedural justice, perceived uncertainty, and satisfaction with decisions. Research hypotheses,
which were derived from the group-value theory and the system justification theory, were tested. The results showed that high
institutional legitimacy reduced the effect of procedural justice on the satisfaction with political decisions. Procedural
justice predicted the acceptance of decisions only when institutional legitimacy was low. Moreover, perceived uncertainty
increased the perception of legitimacy. The implications of these findings for a social psychological theory of legitimacy
and policymaking are briefly discussed.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Pages 1-16
- DOI 10.1007/s11211-011-0136-5
- Authors
- Annukka Vainio, Department of Social Research, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 54, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
- Journal Social Justice Research
- Online ISSN 1573-6725
- Print ISSN 0885-7466