Apology (act): Difference between revisions
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An effective apology increases the amount that people like the offender, but decreases their respect for the offender's competence.<ref name=":0" /> |
An effective apology increases the amount that people like the offender, but decreases their respect for the offender's competence.<ref name=":0" /> |
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Apologies are a common way to maintain or repair [[Interpersonal relationship|interpersonal relationships]]. As a result, they are more common in long-term or valuable relationships.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ho|first=Benjamin|date=January 2012|title=Apologies as Signals: With Evidence from a Trust Game |
Apologies are a common way to maintain or repair [[Interpersonal relationship|interpersonal relationships]]. As a result, they are more common in long-term or valuable relationships.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ho|first=Benjamin|date=January 2012|title=Apologies as Signals: With Evidence from a Trust Game|journal=Management Science|language=en|volume=58|issue=1|pages=141–158|doi=10.1287/mnsc.1110.1410|issn=0025-1909}}</ref> |
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== Whether to apologize == |
== Whether to apologize == |
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Repeated or frequent apologies can be more offensive than never apologizing.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Kellerman|first=Barbara|date=April 2006|title=When should a leader apologize and when not? |
Repeated or frequent apologies can be more offensive than never apologizing.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Kellerman|first=Barbara|date=April 2006|title=When should a leader apologize and when not?|journal=Harvard Business Review|volume=84|issue=4|pages=72–81; 148|issn=0017-8012|pmid=16579415}}</ref> |
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For political and business leaders, public apologies involve some risks. An apology that is "too little, too late, or too transparently tactical" can backfire and result in more damage.<ref name=":1" /> A public leader may refuse to apologize to avoid being seen as incompetent.<ref name=":0" /> |
For political and business leaders, public apologies involve some risks. An apology that is "too little, too late, or too transparently tactical" can backfire and result in more damage.<ref name=":1" /> A public leader may refuse to apologize to avoid being seen as incompetent.<ref name=":0" /> |
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Some US states have adopted laws that allow healthcare providers to apologize for bad outcomes, without those apologies being considered evidence of wrongdoing for [[Medical malpractice|malpractice]] claims. These laws are associated with claims being settled more quickly and at a lower cost, especially for severe injuries.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ho|first=Benjamin|last2=Liu|first2=Elaine|date=2011-08-12|title=Does sorry work? The impact of apology laws on medical malpractice |
Some US states have adopted laws that allow healthcare providers to apologize for bad outcomes, without those apologies being considered evidence of wrongdoing for [[Medical malpractice|malpractice]] claims. These laws are associated with claims being settled more quickly and at a lower cost, especially for severe injuries.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ho|first=Benjamin|last2=Liu|first2=Elaine|date=2011-08-12|title=Does sorry work? The impact of apology laws on medical malpractice|journal=Journal of Risk and Uncertainty|language=en|volume=43|issue=2|pages=141–167|doi=10.1007/s11166-011-9126-0|issn=0895-5646}}</ref> |
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== Types == |
== Types == |
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Revision as of 13:16, 3 November 2018
An apology is an expression of regret or remorse for actions. Apologizing is the act of expressing that regret or remorse.
Efficacy
When an apology is effective, the offender has a greater chance of being forgiven.[1]
Apologizing is more effective when the apology is delivered shortly after the incident, or after the resulting problems were brought to the attention of the offender.[1]
Effective apology statements focus on the harm done to victims while minimizing descriptions of the offender's context, motivation, or justification.[1] They apologize for the offender's own actions, such as "I'm sorry I said that", and not for other people's reactions to those actions ("I'm sorry people were offended").[1] Effective apologies also clearly express remorse, and may name efforts at restitution that the offender commits to undertaking.[1]
Apologies are more effective when they cost the offender something, whether that cost is financial, social status, or making a commitment to do better in the future.[1]
Effects
An effective apology increases the amount that people like the offender, but decreases their respect for the offender's competence.[1]
Apologies are a common way to maintain or repair interpersonal relationships. As a result, they are more common in long-term or valuable relationships.[1][2]
Whether to apologize
Repeated or frequent apologies can be more offensive than never apologizing.[1][3]
For political and business leaders, public apologies involve some risks. An apology that is "too little, too late, or too transparently tactical" can backfire and result in more damage.[3] A public leader may refuse to apologize to avoid being seen as incompetent.[1]
Some US states have adopted laws that allow healthcare providers to apologize for bad outcomes, without those apologies being considered evidence of wrongdoing for malpractice claims. These laws are associated with claims being settled more quickly and at a lower cost, especially for severe injuries.[4]
Types
- Non-apology apology: A statement that looks like an apology but does not express remorse.
- Forced apology: The perceived offender is coerced into stating an apology. As a form of ritual public humiliation, this practice was approved by the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant, who thought that a monetary fine was not a fit punishment for insults delivered by a wealthy person of high social status, for whom the social cost of apologizing was much greater than the financial cost of paying a fine.[5] Instead, Kant argued that legally forcing the man to make a humiliating public apology to the poor or low-status person was a more appropriate punishment, because it punished the man who had humiliated someone with being humiliated himself.[5] In modern Western cultures, the forced apology is dismissed as a meaningless theatrical gesture.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Dubner, Stephen J. (10 October 2018). "How to Optimize Your Apology". Freakonomics. Retrieved 2018-10-15.
- ^ Ho, Benjamin (January 2012). "Apologies as Signals: With Evidence from a Trust Game". Management Science. 58 (1): 141–158. doi:10.1287/mnsc.1110.1410. ISSN 0025-1909.
- ^ a b Kellerman, Barbara (April 2006). "When should a leader apologize and when not?". Harvard Business Review. 84 (4): 72–81, 148. ISSN 0017-8012. PMID 16579415.
- ^ Ho, Benjamin; Liu, Elaine (2011-08-12). "Does sorry work? The impact of apology laws on medical malpractice". Journal of Risk and Uncertainty. 43 (2): 141–167. doi:10.1007/s11166-011-9126-0. ISSN 0895-5646.
- ^ a b Babcock, William A.; Freivogel, William H. (2015-03-23). The SAGE Guide to Key Issues in Mass Media Ethics and Law. SAGE Publications. ISBN 9781506317274.