Expanding Our Models of Justice in Dispute Resolution: A Field Test of the Contribution of Interactional Justice

Abstract

Historically, researchers in conflict management have used theories of distributive and procedural justice to explain participant satisfaction with dispute resolution processes. Using a large national sample of exit surveys collected from participants in the United States Postal Service (USPS) REDRESS(R) program, the authors show that the procedural justice model better fits the data from this employment mediation program than the distributive justice model. However, the procedural justice model, as traditionally framed, includes no component for measuring changes in the relationship between the disputants. The authors suggest that an interactional model of justice, which includes measures of empowerment and recognition in a transformative index, in addition to measures of process and resolution, can better explain participant satisfaction with this program. The results of a multiple regression analysis support this hypothesis.