2021 Volume 2020 Issue 2 Pages 47-57
Legitimacy is defined as the approvability of an individual’s or others’ rights in the context of public decision-making. The superior legitimization of the concerned parties reveals the tendency of people to approve of the concerned parties’ superior legitimacy in cases involving the “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) problem; induces concerned parties’ rejections of NIMBY facilities, such as a geological disposal facility of high-level radioactive waste (HLW) involving various costs for the local area (compared with enhancing public interest for the whole of society); and undermines total social benefits. The superior legitimization of the concerned parties accrues from a moral judgment process rather than from a rational process. This research hypothesized that the aspects of moral dilemma of a NIMBY problem stimulate moral judgments. A survey that focused on the legitimacy of local residents and the government agency around the location of the geological disposal facility of HLW suggested that moral foundations affect legitimacy judgments indirectly. The moral foundations of legitimacy judgments were also discussed theoretically.
