China Social Science Review

No.2, 2023

Emotional Justice from the Perspective of Emotional Psychology

(Abstract)

Tang Fenghe

The so-called qingli (emotional justice) is the emotional reason, which is based on the legitimate desire, and emerges through the accurate cognition and evaluation of the facts. The process of emotional development is one that includes the operation of the rational process. The so-called tianli (natural reason) in Chinese culture, as a kind of emotional ontology culture, is this emotional reason. The so-called emotional justice is a judicial mode which is based on the spirit of this emotional justice, takes the legitimate desire as a precondition, builds on the accurate cognition and evaluation of the facts of the case, uses the rational ability of cognition and evaluation, and adopts the value of conforming to natural reason. In order to achieve the harmony of emotion and reason in judicial decision, we must make correct cognition and evaluation of the facts of the case, avoiding wrong emotion and irrelevant emotion; we must base our emotion on legitimate and lawful desires, avoiding excessive and numb emotion.