Procedural Fairness, Voice and Democratic Legitimacy

Abstract

Procedural fairness theory has become the most prominent micro-level theory to study the consequences of political decision making processes on democratic legitimacy. One of its key ideas is that giving people voice in decision-making processes can foster legitimacy. This theoretical framework has turned out to be enormously powerful in explaining individual behavior in organizational, legal, and criminal settings (e.g. Tyler 1990; Tyler 2011). However, its applicability in the realm of political decision making arrangements remains debated. In this panel we want to discuss the applicability of the procedural fairness framework for political decision making. We aim to refine our understanding by focusing in particular on the question under which conditions this framework can be applied. In effect, the impact of procedures can depend on a variety of factors, ranging from characteristics of the process itself to individual differences among citizens to context characteristics. We aim at overcoming a “one size fits all” perspective that overlooks the conditional nature of procedural effects and is leaving us with mixed empirical results on the applicability of the procedural fairness framework to political settings. By embracing this conditionality perspective and an interdisciplinary approach that integrates insights from psychological and political science research, this panel is set up to gain a better understanding of how and when giving voice in political decision-making processes can affect democratic legitimacy.