A Biometric Analysis of the Just World Belief Theory: Some Implications for the Field of Marketing
Chapter from the book:
Duran,
C.
&
Doğan,
S.
(eds.)
2024.
Current Issues and Practices in Business Administration-I.
Synopsis
The belief in a just world reflects a naïve tendency to assume that good things happen to good people while bad things happen to those who are bad. This theory suggests that individuals form their expectations and responses to their environment and the events they experience based on an assumption of a just world. People tend to inherently believe in this principle, and when this belief is disrupted, it may lead them to distort their perceptions and judgments. Originating academically in the 1960s through a series of empirical and conceptual studies by Lerner, the Just World Theory maintained steady development until 2006, after which interest surged significantly between 2006 and 2023. This trend suggests that the Just World Theory has become a prominent framework for understanding interpersonal and social relationships, particularly over the past two decades. Most studies grounded in this theory have emerged from the fields of psychology and social sciences, as expected. In the field of Business Administration, which includes marketing, only 3.7% of these studies were conducted. The leading countries in publishing research on the Just World Theory are the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom; however, our country is not among the top ten. Rather than a drawback, this represents an opportunity. In developing countries like Turkey, where relationships among consumers, firms, brands, and various market actors are yet to be institutionalized, gaining insights into consumer behavior is theoretically and practically crucial. The Just World belief can offer a valuable framework for analyzing consumption behaviors rooted in the exchange dynamics among these market participants.