System justification, subjective well-being, and mental health symptoms in members of disadvantaged minority groups

Although system justification-believing that the societal status quo is legitimate and desirable-is positively associated with subjective well-being and mental health outcomes for members of advantaged groups, the picture is more complicated for members of disadvantaged minority groups. According to system justification theory, believing that the social system is legitimate and desirable is a way of coping with one's own and fellow in-group members' state of disadvantage. At the same time, it is also a potential stressor, insofar as it implies that there are deficiencies of the individuals and groups who "fail" to succeed in a fair system. In this article, we quantitatively summarize the results of 34 articles (and 65 effect sizes) identified through computerized searches of scientific databases. Meta-analytic results revealed that system justification among members of disadvantaged minority groups was associated with lower levels of psychological distress (r = -0.131, k = 22, N = 25,506) and higher levels of subjective well-being (r = 0.190, k = 31, N = 172,075) and self-esteem (r = 0.106, k = 12, N = 4,839). These findings are consistent with the notion that, in general, system justification serves the palliative function of reducing distress and improving subjective well-being, most likely by increasing perceptions of personal control and individual mobility and decreasing perceptions of discrimination. At the same time, system justification can come at the expense of mental health when associated with the internalization of inferiority. Suggestions for future research are provided.