Beliefs in a Just World, Subjective Well-Being and Attitudes Towards Refugees Among Refugee Workers

Abstract

Previous research has shown that the belief that the world is fair to the self (BJW-self) is positively related to indices of subjective well-being, whereas the belief that the world is fair to others (BJW-others) is positively related to harsher social attitudes. The present study aims to investigate the relation between these two forms of beliefs in a just world and the subjective well-being and social attitudes of people working with refugees. A sample of 253 refugee workers completed measures of BJW-others, BJW-self, perceived stress, life satisfaction, attitudes towards refugees and empathy for refugees. We found that refugee workers with stronger BJW-self reported experiencing less stress and more life satisfaction. Stronger BJW-others, however, predicted harsher attitudes towards refugees while controlling for BJW-self. These findings highlight the important function that justice beliefs play in the subjective well-being and social attitudes of refugee workers.