Current Status and Prospects of Research on Justice Sensitivity

Yu Liao; Xue Zhao

doi:10.6918/IJOSSER.202607_9(7).0019

Authors

Yu Liao School of Education and Psychological Science, Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, Sichuan Zigong 643000, China
Xue Zhao School of Education and Psychological Science, Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, Sichuan Zigong 643000, China

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6918/IJOSSER.202607_9(7).0019

Keywords:

Justice sensitivity; four-dimensional structure; prosocial behavior; group attitudes; justice perception.

Abstract

Justice sensitivity is a stable personality trait that characterizes individual differences in the ease of perceiving unjust events and the intensity of reactions to them. After nearly three decades of development, this research field has formed a mature four-dimensional structure model, including the dimensions of victim, observer, beneficiary, and perpetrator, which profoundly reveals differentiated psychological and behavioral responses due to different roles individuals play in unjust events. This report systematically reviews the conceptual evolution of justice sensitivity, the theoretical logic of the four-dimensional structure, and introduces internationally mainstream and locally adapted measurement tools. The core part of the report integrates empirical findings from two levels—individual psychology and behavior, and intergroup relations—and emphasizes the "self-oriented vs. other-oriented" dimensional differentiation effect that runs through them. Based on a systematic review of existing literature, it identifies limitations in current research, including coverage of research subjects, methodological paradigms, cultural adaptation, mechanism integration, and practical application, and provides prospects for future research directions, aiming to provide solid theoretical references and forward-looking guidance for deepening and innovating domestic research in this field.

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