Ramona Bobocel | Psychology | University of Waterloo

B.Sc (Alberta), MA, PhD (Western University)

Canadian Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (CSIOP)

Research interests

My research program focuses on social justice and the study of fairness/justice in the workplace. Overall, my research aims to understand how unfairness affects employees, why unfairness persists in the workplace, and how to promote the fair treatment and well-being of employees. My ultimate goal is to create more effective and functional workplaces.

Select publications

† denotes student coauthors at the time of the research. Other publications are listed on the Fairness at Work Lab webpage.

†Nishioka, M., Bobocel, D. R., & Beck, J. W. (2026). Making sense of claims of unfairness: Third-party overall fairness perceptions negatively affect claim veracity and deontic reactions. Journal of Psychology and Business. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-025-10097-6
Van Houwelingen, G., Bobocel, D. R., & Okimoto, T. G. (2025). Conflicting Loyalties: Cognitive Abstraction Drives Whistleblowing Behavior Among Those Who Value Loyalty. Social Justice Research, 38(1), 48-74.
Shen, W., Bobocel, D. R., & †Becker, J. (2025). Intersectional penalties for perceived interpersonal justice violations among Black and Hispanic male leaders. Journal of Business and Psychology, 40, 903-923.
Brockner, J., & Bobocel, D. R. (2024). How theory and research in organizational justice can help to address organizational and social issues. Organizational Psychology Review, 14(2), 288-306.
†Mu, F., Shen, W., & Bobocel, D. R., & †Barron, A. H. (2024). Investigating gendered reactions to manager mistreatment: Testing the presumed role of prescriptive stereotypes. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 45(5), 720-740.
†Brienza, J. P., †Dorfman, A., & Bobocel, D. R. (2024). Mind the gap: Wise reasoning attenuates gender pay gap scepticism in men. European Journal of Social Psychology, 54(1), 237–250.
Bobocel, D. R. (2021). Current directions in organizational justice. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science: Special Issue on I/O Psychology in Canada, 2, 98-105.
†Holt, L., Bobocel, D. R., & †Chen, V. (2021). Delivering bad news fairly: Higher construal level promotes interactional justice enactment through perspective taking. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 42(6), 708-725.
†Brienza, J. P., †Kung, F. Y. H., †Santos, H. C., Bobocel, D. R., & Grossmann, I. (2018). Wisdom, bias, and balance: Toward a process-sensitive measurement of wisdom-related cognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 115, 1093-1126.
†Zdaniuk, A., & Bobocel, D. R. (2015). The role of charismatic leadership in promoting workplace forgiveness. Leadership Quarterly, 26, 863-877.

Edited book

Bobocel, D. R., Kay, A. C., Zanna, M. P., & Olson, J. M. (Eds.) (2010). The psychology of justice and legitimacy: The Ontario symposium (Vol. 11). New York: Psychology Press.

Awards and honours

Recipient, Canadian Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Distinguished Contributions Award (2025)
Recipient, Arts Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching (2022)
Recipient, Arts Faculty Outstanding Performance Award (2019, 2022)
Recipient, Ontario Premier’s Research Excellence Award (2002)
Fellow, American Psychological Association (APA)
Fellow, Canadian Psychological Association (CPA)
Fellow, Association for Psychological Science (APS)
Fellow, Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP)

Teaching interests

Psychological Measurement (Psychometrics)
Research Methods in I-O Psychology
Justice and Fairness in the Workplace

Professional memberships

Association for Psychological Sciences
Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, American Psychological Association
Canadian Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Academy of Management
International Society for Justice Research
Society for the Study of Social Issues