The stifled voice of discontent? Toward a social-psychological understanding of voice suppression and the emergence of subversive action

The ability to voice one s opinion is a strong determinant of long-term commitment to any social group. If we have our say in matters that are relevant to us, then our satisfaction with outcomes and our future pro-social behaviours will be enhanced. But what if our voice is stifled and suppressed? Will we remain committed to the social organization? Or will we strike back to have ourselves heard in any way we can? It is the social-psychological search for the answers to these questions that is the aim of this proposed research project. Extending theories of procedural justice, we will experimentally examine for the first time the relationship between voice suppression, perceptions of group rejection, and anti-social, subversive behaviour.