It ain’t what you do, it’s the way that you do it: Characteristics of procedural justice and their importance in social decision-making

Standard welfare economic analysis evaluates all actions by their consequences. However, evidence from other disciplines suggests that the procedures by which decisions are made also affects the welfare of individuals. This paper outlines six characteristics on which judgements about procedural justice may be based. Using the example of health care rationing, we examine the importance of each characteristic using qualitative and quantitative methods. We further consider the importance of each of these characteristics relative to one another and examine whether they are important for consequential or non-consequential reasons. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. JEL classification: D60; D70