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Organizational justice research traditionally focuses on individuals’ reactions to how they are treated by others. However, little attention has been given to why individuals choose to behave fairly or unfairly in the first place. Our chapter draws on the literature in ethical decision making (Rest, 1986) to identify five distinct factors that influence an individual's decision to treat others fairly. Using this model as a foundation, and drawing on extant research in justice, we explore five different types of roadblocks to fair behavior. We explore the implications of these roadblocks for organizations concerned with creating and maintaining a fair workplace. Finally, we discuss future research suggested by the five factors and some dilemmas, issues, and caveats relevant to the proposed model.

Drawing on Bandwidth Fidelity Theory (Cronbach, 1970; Cronbach & Gleser, 1965), this chapter argues for more specificity with regard to conceptualizing and measuring variables in the field of behavioral ethics. We provide an example of how this might be accomplished, by building on recent work on organizational support that emphasizes more specific facets of perceived organizational support (POS). We introduce the concept of perceived organizational support for ethics (POS-E) and test its predictive power on a sample of 4,315 employees from manufacturing and technology firms. We find support for our assertions that ethics-specific support is a better predictor of ethics-related outcomes (e.g., pressure to violate ethical standards, preparedness to handle ethical violations) and general support (POS) is a better predictor of more general organizational outcomes (i.e., job satisfaction). Theoretical and practical implications of these results and the importance of moving toward more specific versus general constructs in the field of behavioral ethics are discussed.

The chapter by Rupp, Bashur, and Liao (in this volume) is rich with ideas for the study of a justice climate. This comment on their chapter focuses on three areas that flow from their presentation: issues in modeling climate strength, complexity and simplicity in conceptualizing a justice climate, and an alternative conceptualization of a justice climate. Specifically, it describes how polynomial regression and response surface methodology may assist researchers in examining climate fit. The comment also describes the benefits of a simplified view of a justice climate – one focusing on the overall justice climate. Finally, it develops a framework for examining a climate for justice – a climate that promotes fair behavior in organizations.

In this paper, we review current theoretical thinking about organizational justice. We contend that there are three major perspectives for understanding why justice perceptions predict work-relevant criteria: (a) an instrumental approach which emphasizes gains and losses, (b) an inter-personal approach which emphasizes the nature of the relationships among individuals and organizations, and (c) a moral principles approach which emphasizes commitment to ethical standards. We review each of these perspectives, identify the many conceptual frameworks that underlie each approach, and describe both common themes and gaps that exist between the three approaches.

Joseph A. Alutto is dean, Max M. Fisher College of Business, as well as executive dean of the Professional Colleges, The Ohio State University. He holds the John W. Berry, Sr., Chair in Business. From 1976 to 1990, he was dean of the School of Management, State University of New York at Buffalo. He has published more than 70 articles in leading academic journals and serves on a number of corporate and public sector boards, including Nationwide Financial Services, United Retail Group, Inc., and M/I Homes.

Maureen L. Ambrose is a professor of management in the College of Business at the University of Central Florida. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Ambrose's research interests include organizational justice, employee deviance, and ethics. Her work has appeared in the Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Administrative Sciences Quarterly, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Management, and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. She is a Fellow of the Academy of Management and of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. She served as an associate editor for the Academy of Management Journal and as co-editor of a special issue on organizational justice for Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. She has served on editorial boards for the Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Management, and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.