--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is an important idea in psychology…" description: "\"There is an important idea in psychology: The 'just world theory,' which says that it is very important for us to convince ourselves that the world is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b00/malcolm-gladwell-348_convince_there-is-an-important-idea-in-psychology_1279700.png" --- # There is an important idea in psychology: The 'just world… ![“There is an important idea in psychology: The 'just world theory,' which says that it is very important for us to convince ourselves that the world is just and things happen for a reason. That there is some elemental fairness in everything, which creates the illusion of justice.” quote by Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b00/malcolm-gladwell-348_convince_there-is-an-important-idea-in-psychology_1279700.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b00/malcolm-gladwell-348_convince_there-is-an-important-idea-in-psychology_1279700.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b00/malcolm-gladwell-348_convince_there-is-an-important-idea-in-psychology_1279700.png) > “There is an important idea in psychology: The 'just world theory,' which says that it is very important for us to convince ourselves that the world is just and things happen for a reason. That there is some elemental fairness in everything, which creates the illusion of justice.” [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People cling to the belief that the world is fair, creating a comforting illusion of justice despite evidence to the contrary. **In simple terms:** We like to think the world is just, even if it isn’t. Key Takeaway Question assumptions about fairness. Themes psychology justice beliefs Mood critical inquisitive Type psychological philosophical When to use this quote - decision making - social policy - personal worldview - ethical debates Key Concepts cognitive bias fairness illusion Questions to Reflect On - How does belief in a just world affect your judgments? - What are the risks of assuming fairness? A Different Perspective Overreliance on this belief can ignore systemic inequities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Elemental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elemental/) [Fairness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairness/) [Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea/) [Illusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusion/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Things happen for a reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen-for-a-reason/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The 'harmonious world' theory .. will help dispel doubts in the international community about China's continued development and refute the absurd 'China threat theory'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ye-xiaowen/the-harmonious-world-theory-will-help-dispel-doubts-in-the/) Ye Xiaowen > [To the whole world you might be just one person, but to one person you might just be the whole world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-casals/to-the-whole-world-you-might-be-just-one-person-but-to-one-person-you/) [Pablo Casals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-casals/) > [There's another world out there just beyond the world we're in. It's just on the other side of that translucent, semitransparent surface.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-viola/there-s-another-world-out-there-just-beyond-the-world-we-re-in-it-s/) [Bill Viola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-viola/) > [Isn't this enough? Just this world? Just THIS?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-minchin/isn-t-this-enough-just-this-world-just-this/) [Tim Minchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-minchin/) > [“Sometimes you have to jumpstart the world just to get it to be what even the world admits it should be”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-ryan-hyde/sometimes-you-have-to-jumpstart-the-world-just-to-get-it-to-be-what/) [Catherine Ryan Hyde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-ryan-hyde/) > [If I hadn't been an actress, I was thinking seriously about going into psychology. It's just really what I'm interested in: the human psyche…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-danes/if-i-hadn-t-been-an-actress-i-was-thinking-seriously-about-going-into/) [Claire Danes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-danes/) > [Psychology should be just as concerned with building strength as with repairing damage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/psychology-should-be-just-as-concerned-with-building-strength-as-with/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't believe that we evolved moral psychology; it just doesn't seem plausible to me as a biological phenomenon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/i-don-t-believe-that-we-evolved-moral-psychology-it-just-doesn-t-seem/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [“Food is everything. It provides energy and strength to the elemental self; With knowing self; evolving side by side.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-kumar/food-is-everything-it-provides-energy-and-strength-to-the-elemental/) [Gian Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-kumar/) > [“You're into her. You're into the girl we came here to kill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-o-neale/you-re-into-her-you-re-into-the-girl-we-came-here-to-kill/) [Stacey O'Neale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-o-neale/) > [Elemental Music is never just music. It's bound up with movement, dance and speech, and so it is a form of music in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-orff/elemental-music-is-never-just-music-it-s-bound-up-with-movement-dance/) [Carl Orff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-orff/) > [I just want my work to be part of the elemental world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-gormley/i-just-want-my-work-to-be-part-of-the-elemental-world/) [Antony Gormley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-gormley/) > [No matter where we are or how advanced we think we are, there are elemental issues of our civilization that stories help us work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-camargo/no-matter-where-we-are-or-how-advanced-we-think-we-are-there-are/) [Christian Camargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-camargo/) > [“They said you’re an Elemental. You don’t look like an Elemental, more like a cheap maid from Slemnask.' She spat the words out, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-macdonald/they-said-you-re-an-elemental-you-don-t-look-like-an-elemental-more/) Nicole MacDonald > [“At its most elemental, a spell is no more than a recipe for change.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-maguire/at-its-most-elemental-a-spell-is-no-more-than-a-recipe-for-change/) [Gregory Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-maguire/) ## More by Malcolm Gladwell > [When I go to my health club, and it's in the basement, you have to take the elevator down. And this drives me crazy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/when-i-go-to-my-health-club-and-it-s-in-the-basement-you-have-to-take/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-tipping-point-is-that-magic-moment-when-an-idea-trend-or-social/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“The scholars who research happiness suggest that more money stops making people happier at a family income of around seventy-five thousand dollars a year.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-scholars-who-research-happiness-suggest-that-more-money-stops/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [We need to be clear when we venerate entrepreneurs what we are venerating.They are not moral leaders. If they were moral leaders, they wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/we-need-to-be-clear-when-we-venerate-entrepreneurs-what-we-are/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“Some people look like they sound better than they actually sound, because they look confident and have good posture," once musician, a veteran of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/some-people-look-like-they-sound-better-than-they-actually-sound/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [A handicap is like trying to race and you have a ten pound weight stuck to your waist. That is a handicap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/a-handicap-is-like-trying-to-race-and-you-have-a-ten-pound-weight/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“neighborhood was filled with engineers from Hewlett-Packard, then as now one of”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/neighborhood-was-filled-with-engineers-from-hewlett-packard-then-as/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“People are ruined by challenged economic lives. But they are ruined by wealth as well because they lose their ambition and they lose their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/people-are-ruined-by-challenged-economic-lives-but-they-are-ruined-by/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [The single most important thing a city can do is provide a community where interesting, smart people want to live with their families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-single-most-important-thing-a-city-can-do-is-provide-a-community/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [ \[Norden\] said, with the Mark 15 Norden bombsight, he could drop a bomb into a pickle barrel at 20,000 feet. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/norden-said-with-the-mark-15-norden-bombsight-he-could-drop-a-bomb/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [The willingness to be self-critical in England is much greater than the willingness to be self-critical in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-willingness-to-be-self-critical-in-england-is-much-greater-than/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [The conventional explanation for Jewish success, of course, is that Jews come from a literate, intellectual culture. They are famously "the people of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-conventional-explanation-for-jewish-success-of-course-is-that/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“An archway to one side leads to a church, the Madonna del Carmine—Our Lady of Mount Carmine. Narrow”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/an-archway-to-one-side-leads-to-a-church-the-madonna-del-carmine-our/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [People are experience-rich and theory-poor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/people-are-experience-rich-and-theory-poor/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“Most psychologists believe that nature—genetics—accounts for about half of the reason why we tend to act the way we do. His point is simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/most-psychologists-believe-that-nature-genetics-accounts-for-about/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) [Explore all 647 Malcolm Gladwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) ## More Convince quotes > [“Sometimes we want something to be true so badly that we convince ourselves that it is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/sometimes-we-want-something-to-be-true-so-badly-that-we-convince/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [The privilege of prayer to me is one of the most cherished possessions, because faith and experience alike convince me that God himself sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-grenfell/the-privilege-of-prayer-to-me-is-one-of-the-most-cherished/) [Wilfred Grenfell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-grenfell/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The first duty of a wise advocate is to convince his opponents that he understands their arguments, and sympathies with their just feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-first-duty-of-a-wise-advocate-is-to-convince-his-opponents-that/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Once you convince people that they're victims, you really own them because you've just told them that whatever problems they have in life, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/once-you-convince-people-that-they-re-victims-you-really-own-them/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [“What can I say to convince you the Houses of Parliament dissolve night after night to become the fluid dream of the Thames? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisel-mueller/what-can-i-say-to-convince-you-the-houses-of-parliament-dissolve/) [Lisel Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisel-mueller/) > [Human beings have the incredible capacity for denial. I think they do. And although it's really hard to believe, I have my doubts. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/human-beings-have-the-incredible-capacity-for-denial-i-think-they-do/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [“If you can convince yourself, you can convince the other fellow,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/if-you-can-convince-yourself-you-can-convince-the-other-fellow/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [Don't lie to yourself about what you can't or can achieve. Convince yourself on a realistic level that you can do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-lie-to-yourself-about-what-you-can-t-or-can-achieve-convince/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't ever let anyone convince you that your imagination is wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/don-t-ever-let-anyone-convince-you-that-your-imagination-is-wrong/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [It's hard to convince your agents and managers to do theater, because it's not as financially rewarding and it takes up a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-helberg/it-s-hard-to-convince-your-agents-and-managers-to-do-theater-because/) [Simon Helberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-helberg/) > [I guess that is the strange part of the human brain that people have studied for eons - is hatred and self-hatred. 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