THE JUST-

WORLD
PHENOMENON
From James Waller, Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit
Genocide and Mass Killing, Oxford U Press, 2007, pp. 212-219.
BAD THINGS
HAPPEN TO GOOD
PEOPLE.
We all know this.
BUT WE CHERISH
OUR ILLUSION OF
A WORLD THAT IS
FAIR AND JUST.
We hold onto that notion, however misguided, so that we have the courage to go out
into the world, to send our children out into the world, to make sense of our existence.
OUR NEED TO BELIEVE IN A JUST
WORLD OFTEN OVERWHELMS
OUR RECOGNITION THAT BAD
THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD
PEOPLE .
As a result, we show a cognitive tendency to search for ways to blame individuals for
their victimization.
THE GENERAL TENDENCY
TO BLAME THE VICTIM FOR
THEIR OWN SUFFERING IS A
CENTRAL TRUTH ABOUT
HUMAN EXPERIENCE.
“BLAMING THE
VICTIM”
Examples?
EVEN VICTIMS CAN GO TO
GREAT LENGTHS TO
BLAME THEMSELVES FOR
THEIR OWN
VICTIMIZATION.
Examples: rape victims, domestic abuse victims, robbery victims… and more.
THE BELIEF THAT THE WORLD
IS A JUST PLACE LEADS US TO
ACCEPT THE SUFFERING OF
OTHERS MORE EASILY, EVEN OF
PEOPLE WE OURSELVES HAVE
HARMED.
A solid body of research evidence confirms the tendency of perpetrators, bystanders,
and even victims to see the world as just.
WHY IS THE JUST-WORLD PHENOMENON
SUCH A PREVAILING COGNITIVE
TENDENCY?
 Socialization. We are taught from early childhood that good is rewarded and evil punished.
 The Hollywood syndrome. Hard work and virtue pay dividends and make for happy endings.
 A self-protective device. Seeing others suffer is terrifying because it reminds us of our fragile
existence. The best way to protect us from this fear is to convince ourselves that victims must
have done something to bring bad things on themselves. In our minds we remain safe because
we would always be more cautious or wise than the victims were.
 Scapegoating. It becomes easier to blame the victim when we are frustrated and the cause of
our frustration is too intimidating or too vague to confront directly. We redirect or displace our
hostility to convenient target groups.
“IN SHORT, THE JUST-WORLD PHENOMENON
ALLOWS US TO BE INDIFFERENT TO
EXTRAORDINARY EVIL. THE INDIFFERENCE IS
NOT BECAUSE WE ARE WITHOUT CONCERN
FOR GOOD BUT, RATHER, BECAUSE WE SEE NO
EVIL. THE SUFFERING OF VICTIMS IS JUST
AND DESERVED. INTERVENTIONS ARE NOT
WARRANTED.

This is yet another reminder that mere exposure to suffering does not automatically
lead to compassion.” (p. 219)