Values, Achievement, and Justice: Studies in the Psychology of Deservingness

B

Barnes & Noble Verified independent store

→

When we say that a person deserves a positive or negative outcome, we are making a judgment that is influenced by a number ofvariables. We would certainly take into account whether the person was resp- sible for the outcome or whether the outcome could be attributed too ther sources. We would also consider whether the actions that led to the positive or negative outcome were actions that we would value or - tions that would meet with our disapproval. We might also be influenced by the person’s own positive or negative characteristics, by ourkno- edgeofwhatkinds ofgroups orsocialcategoriesthepersonbelongedto, and by whether we like or dislike the person. Information about these differentvariableshastobe consideredandintegratedin someway, and our judgment of deservingness follows that psychological process, a process that involves the cognitive-affective system. Values, Achievements, and Justice is about deservingness and about the variables that affect the judgments we make. I use the term “dese- ingness” although I could equally have referred to “deservedness” or “desert.” The terms are all virtually equivalent in meaning, although dictionaries may separate them by using fine distinctions. I assume that the sorts of variables I have just described will affect ourjudgments of deservingness, and I further assume that a judgment of deservingness is most likely to occur when these variables fit together in a consistent, harmonious, and balanced way. Show more