This book, first published in 2001, summarizes and integrates the best social scientific research in a previously neglected but rapidly emerging interdisciplinary field seeking to understand processes of legitimation and de-legitimation in social relations. Contributors are leading researchers in sociology, psychology, political science, and organizational behavior, and the themes they cover are overlapping and mutually informative. The book is constructed primarily around the authors and their theories, and there is an uncommon degree of cross talk amongst the authors. The chapters converge on key questions concerning the ways in which people construct ideological justifications or rationalizations for their own actions and for the actions of others taken on behalf of valued groups and systems. The result is a general approach to the psychological basis of social inequality, which may be applied to distinctions of race, gender, social class, occupational status, and many other forms of inequality.

This book, first published in 2001, provides a general approach to the psychological basis of social inequality.
Reviews
"An ambitious collection...a masterly overview of the latest research on the psychological, sociological, and organizational development theories of legitimacy...will provide students of organizational studies with a valuable introduction to the psychology of legitimacy." Administrative Science Quarterly
"Compiles much of the best current research on legitimacy processes...An important book...Any researcher involved in the serious study of legitimacy processes and everyone who wants to better understand how legitimacy affects individual and collective behavior should read this book." Contemporary Sociology
"Introduces psychologists and social psychologists to exciting work in the area of legitimacy from the perspective of the individual." Social Justice Research
"Collects varied perspectives on the social-psychological processes, among both the advantaged and the disadvantaged, that shore up this wall around the status quo...Can be usefully applied in many contexts." Civil Rights Journal
"This is an important book. Any researcher involved in the serious study of legitimacy processes and everyone who wants to better understand how legitimacy affects individual and collective behavior should read this book." Contemporary Psychology
"This book is exhaustively researched and referenced and, as a whole, creates a substantial foundation for future research." Administrative Science Quarterly



Book Information
ISBN 9780521786997
Author John T. Jost
Format Paperback
Page Count 494
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 670g
Dimensions(mm) 230mm * 162mm * 27mm