Gender Bias in Justice Evaluations of Earnings: Evidence From Three Survey Experiments

Previous studies in sociological justice research have found mixed results on the gender bias in justice evaluations of earnings. Some studies report a just gender pay gap favoring men; others do not find this gap. This study investigates the gender bias in justice evaluations by linking it to the inequality structure in which people are embedded. The empirical analyses are based on three factorial survey studies that consist of fictitious full-time employees with varying characteristics, including gender. One study was conducted with social sciences students, and two used population samples of German inhabitants. The results show that social sciences students revealed no gender bias in their evaluations. In the population surveys, both men and women showed a rating behavior favoring male employees. Respondents living in federal states with high actual gender pay gaps produced a larger bias favoring men. The findings indicate that actual inequalities between men and women influence the gender bias in justice evaluations.