The Impact of Justice and Self-Serving Bias Explanations of the Perceived Fairness of Different Types of Selection Tests

Reactions to the use of the ACT/SAT, biodata, and situational judgment measures in college admissions decisions were collected from 644 college freshmen. Evaluation of a series of models of fairness perceptions indicated that self-serving bias and organizational justice explanations may both be responsible for these reactions. Examination of respondents’ beliefs about their performance compared with other students’ performance also elicited responses that may be attributable to concerns about distributive justice. A variety of perceptual processes may explain fairness perceptions, but from a practical perspective, it may be easiest to manipulate examinees’ perceptions of the relevance, and indirectly, the perceived fairness of the selection procedures used to make major selection or admissions decisions.