Perceived Unfairness Moderates the Association Between Relative Deprivation and Subjective Well-Being: Findings from an East Asian Country

A large volume of research highlights the adverse effects of relative deprivation on subjective well-being. Across different empirical settings and modelling approaches, a conceptual common denominator exists: the bulk of prior studies assumes that lower social status, by definition, implies higher relative deprivation, resulting in reduced well-being. In the present study, we take issue with this assumption and propose that lower self-ascribed positions on the status hierarchy are necessary but insufficient in and of themselves to undermine well-being. The critical, yet often neglected, factor in the literature is perceived societal unfairness. That is, one must believe that personal predicament as gauged by status disadvantage is, at least partly, due to some exogenous or impersonal forces (e.g., discrimination, limited opportunity). Our central argument is that the magnitude of the focal relationship between relative deprivation and well-being should be more pronounced among those who hold higher perceptions of unfairness. Using three independently collected probability datasets on the South Korean population—Social Science Korea (2017), Seoul Survey (2018), and Korean Social Integration Survey (2018)—we systematically test this hypothesis. Results from multilevel models robustly demonstrate that the connection between lower social status and lower well-being is significantly stronger among individuals who assess their society to be more ‘unfair,’ suggesting that future research should incorporate the level of perceived unfairness as a consequential moderator.