psychology

You believe the world is fundamentally fair to everyone.

A 1966 study demonstrated that people will blame victims for their own misfortune to maintain the belief that people generally get what they deserve.

Melvin Lerner and Carolyn Simmons, 1966, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

You judge the victim’s actions because it is safer than acknowledging the chaos of reality.

Where this comes from

Study: Melvin Lerner, 1965, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
What the check found: The core claim is directionally correct, but the date of the primary study is misattributed. The landmark publication is Lerner & Simmons (1966).
Confidence: Solid, with limits

One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.