A policy-modeling approach to examining fairness judgments in organizational acquisitions

Organizational acquisitions may be characterized by the degree of friendlin ess or hostility as well as the degree of autonomy or absorption of the org anizations following the merger. This study examined judgments of fairness across four types of organizational acquisitions. Students read fictitious newspaper accounts of a university acquisition and rated their expectations and perceptions of fairness about possible changes. Results indicated that in an acquisition, both the procedures used and the outcomes provided infl uenced how fair the acquisition was perceived. As predicted, the relative i mportance of procedures and outcomes in overall perceptions of fairness shi fted depending on the context of the acquisition. As the desirability of th e acquisition increased, individuals placed greater importance on the proce dural elements. In a friendly and low integration acquisition, the processe s and outcomes became equally important. Individuals faced with a high inte gration acquisition expected more unfair changes and fewer fair changes to occur. Furthermore, these results highlight the importance expectations pla y in perceptions of fairness. The type of acquisition will influence expect ations for fair treatment. Under less desirable conditions (hostile and hig h-integration mergers), organizations should take steps early in the proces s to manage fairness perceptions. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd .