How do Third Parties React to Injustice in Their Teams? The Role of Relationship Quality

Existing research on third party reactions to injustice implies that factors such as the third party‘s moral identity and perceived power relative to the perpetrator, influence third party reactions to injustice, but the influence of team dynamics has been largely ignored. Although research indicates that organizational justice is important on the team level, as team members learn how others are treated and develop shared perceptions of justice, the question of how these team dynamics influence third party reactions to injustice still remains unanswered. In this study we examine how relationship quality between the third party, the victim and the leader, influence third party reactions to the perceived mistreatment of their fellow team member. We do this by applying a series of metric conjoint analyses, in which participants assess a series of profiles and make a judgment about each profile, thus generating 1199 observations nested in 149 participants. Our findings suggest that the quality of the relationship between the third party and the team leader, and between the third party and the perceived victim have a greater influence on third parties’ decision to punish the team leader or do nothing than the general perception in the team of the overall fairness of the team leader.