Models of psychological inequity

Abstract

The predictive utility of three mathematical models of psychological inequity was competitively tested with survey data obtained from a sample of employed graduate students. Index values of inequity, which were generated from the three models, were examined for curvilinear association with affective outcomes. In terms of satisfying the criterion of displaying an invertedU association (such that overcompensation and undercompensation were associated with greater negative affect relative to equitable compensation), a power-function weighting scheme was identified as a modestly successful algebraic representation of psychological inequity. The study represents the first attempt at explicitly examining mathematical models of individual psychological inequity.