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Effects of Timing and Sincerity of an Apology on Satisfaction and Changes in Negative Feelings During Conflicts
Abstract and Figures
Using attribution theory, this study examined the effects of apology timing, apology
sincerity, and feeling understood on communication satisfaction and changes in negative
emotions (e.g., anger and sadness) during conflict discussions. Sixty romantic couples
engaged in conversations about recurring disagreements in their relationships. One
partner from each couple apologized either earlier or later during the discussions. The
findings showed that different variability existed between the timing of the apology
and reports of communication satisfaction. Later apologies, rather than earlier apologies,
given during conflict discussions that were completed in less than 10 minutes were
associated with more communication satisfaction. Earlier apologies, rather than later
apologies, given during conflict discussions that could have continued past 10 minutes
were associated with more communication satisfaction. Additionally, reports of feeling
understood and apology sincerity predicted communication satisfaction and apologies
seen as more sincere were related to reports of less hard negative emotions such as anger,
but were not related to reports of soft negative emotions, such as sadness. These findings
have implications for the process of forgiveness and the mediation of disputes.
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... Because customers are generally reluctant to voice complaints (Davidow 2003;Stephens and Gwinner 1998), these studies have mostly examined customers who are uncertain about their future relationship with the employee. However, research on interpersonal relationships (Ford 2001;Frantz and Bennigson 2005;Hubbard et al. 2013) hints at the importance of soliciting customers' input before offering an apology in certain circumstances. According to Frantz and Bennigson (2005), victims may not be ready to accept an apology as part of conflict resolution until they voice their concerns and have them understood. ...
... Considering that such a responsive apology allows customers to express their voice first, customers are likely to perceive that the employee will resolve their specific concerns (Frantz and Bennigson 2005;Hubbard et al. 2013). In contrast, customers with a low interaction expectation will be more likely to be satisfied if the apology is offered before their complaints. ...
... Across two studies, we consistently find that in the high interaction expectation conditions, customer satisfaction improves with the presence of a responsive apology (i.e., listen-and-then-apologize), which implies that the employee will resolve customers' concerns without making the same failure again (Frantz and Bennigson 2005;Hubbard et al. 2013). In contrast, in the low interaction expectation conditions, we see an increase in customer satisfaction with the presence of a preemptive apology (i.e., apologize-and-then-listen), which signals that the employee is already aware of the problem, and will fix it soon, without waiting for the customers to express their concerns (Davidow 2003;Smith et al. 1999;Wirtz and Mattila 2004). ...
When there is a service failure, it is often believed that employees should immediately apologize to customers before hearing their complaints. However, we argue that in certain situations, an employee can recover from a service failure more effectively if the employee apologizes after hearing customer complaints. A simple change in the sequential order of apologizing and listening to complaints can significantly impact customer satisfaction. We propose that customer satisfaction increases if an employee’s apology timing is matched with customers’ expectation to interact with the employee in the future. Across two studies, we consistently report that a responsive apology (i.e., listen-and-then-apologize) outperforms a preemptive apology (i.e., apologize-and-then-listen) when customers’ interaction expectation is high. In contrast, the effectiveness of the responsive apology is weaker and even reversed when their interaction expectation is low. We also examine a boundary condition and a potential process likely responsible for this apology time sequence effect.
... Additionally, the original assignment of items expressing ways of apologizing might not have been stringent: While Item 29 belongs to the NS scale, Item 40 ("Saying 'I'm sorry' when one realizes one was wrong") to the positive-submissive scale. In both scenarios, admitting and apologizing for (small) mistakes leads more likely to positive emotions at the receiver, for example, feeling less negative emotions such as anger (e.g., Ebesu Hubbard et al., 2013). Furthermore, this behavior, when meant sincerely, might even contribute to a deeper feeling of understanding each other (e.g., Ebesu Hubbard et al., 2013;Maio et al., 2008). ...
... In both scenarios, admitting and apologizing for (small) mistakes leads more likely to positive emotions at the receiver, for example, feeling less negative emotions such as anger (e.g., Ebesu Hubbard et al., 2013). Furthermore, this behavior, when meant sincerely, might even contribute to a deeper feeling of understanding each other (e.g., Ebesu Hubbard et al., 2013;Maio et al., 2008). This change in feelings and closeness might affect the judgment of the given scenario in a less negative way and might explain why the item does not show a strong loading on the NS scale. ...
Background: This study aimed to develop a German version of the Family Expressiveness Questionnaire (FEQ; Halberstadt, 1983 , 1986 ), which investigates emotional expressiveness within the family context while growing up. While a theoretically derived four-factor structure was postulated, 2- and 3-scale versions have been applied in research. Methods: In Study 1 ( N = 650), these existing models were tested against each other. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted for the solution that best fitted the data with half of the sample, and results were cross-validated in the other half. Construct validation was investigated in Study 2 ( N = 225). Results: An acceptable model fit for a three-factor solution was attained in Study 1. In Study 2, correlation patterns indicated a good convergent and discriminant validity. Reliability estimates in both studies were in an acceptable to excellent range. Conclusion: Findings suggest that the FEQ German version is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing expressiveness within the family.
... Several studies also report that the sequential order of offering an apology, and having customers' concerns understood, matters to the customers (Frantz and Bennigson 2005;Huan 2021;Hubbard et al. 2013). They reveal that when customers are motivated to voice their concerns, it will be more desirable for the employee to apologize after, rather than before, having them voiced and heard. ...
... Additionally, our research extends on prior research on apology timing (Frantz and Bennigson 2005;Huang 2021;Hubbard et al. 2013;Min et al. 2020) by newly identifying an underlying cognitive process and a boundary condition for which listening before apologizing, rather than after, can improve customer satisfaction in different service failure settings. Unlike Frantz and Bennigson (2005) and Min et al. (2020), who focused on exploring how the sequential order of apologizing and listening influences customers' feelings, we go beyond the employee's apology timing and customers' affective response and directly test the critical role of the employee's verbal acknowledgment of customers' concerns and customers' cognitive (e.g., perceived preferential treatment) and behavioral response (e.g., intended tip size). ...
A service employee’s active listening plays a crucial role in restoring a damaged customer relationship. However, previous studies reveal little about how listening to customer complaints operates in recovering a service failure. The purpose of this research is to explore when and why the employee’s active listening has a positive influence on customer response. We define active listening as (1) listening to customers’ concerns before apologizing and (2) verbally acknowledging them. Using scenario-based experiments, we demonstrate that active listening improves customer satisfaction, which in turn increases tip size (Study 1). Moreover, we find that active listening fosters customers’ perceptions of preferential treatment, which lead to greater customer satisfaction (Study 2). Yet, such positive effects of active listening diminish when customers are unexpectedly offered a complimentary service such as a room upgrade. The implications for academic researchers and marketing managers are discussed.
... Due to the exploratory nature of this study, and the limited prior research regarding apologies, we decided to code written apologies for several exploratory components that have not been thoroughly studied, but may be particularly relevant for apologies within a parent-child context. These components include: (1) physical affection (e.g., "Can I give you a hug?"); (2) timing (Ebesu Hubbard et al., 2013;Frantz & Bennigson, 2005; e.g., "I'll give you some space, and we can talk more when you're ready"); (3) term of endearment or love (e.g., "I love you, sweetie"); (4) expression of gratitude (You et al., 2020; e.g., "Thank you for putting your bike away"); (5) request for forgiveness (Lewicki et al., 2016; e.g., "Will you forgive me?"); (8) use of a specific emotion word (e.g., "I was feeling frustrated"); and (9) invalidating/minimizing comments (Molinsky, 2016; e.g., "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings"). We also collected information regarding the length of apology (in number of words). ...
Parenting is a stressful and difficult endeavor, and even the most skillful parents are apt to make mistakes that warrant an apology to their child. However, little is known regarding parents’ overall willingness to apologize to their child or the content of parental apologies when provided. Informed by research on apology outside the parenting context, the current exploratory study aimed to characterize maternal apology attitudes and behavior. A sample of mothers (N = 186) was recruited from the community, and they self-reported their proclivity to apologize to their child, as well as their proclivity to apologize generally. Mothers were also asked to model a skillful parental apology through an open-ended text response to a vignette, and these responses were coded for the presence of effective apology components. Mothers reported a high proclivity to apologize to their child, and this was associated with their willingness to apologize generally. However, the majority of mothers’ written apologies included few of the elements recommended for effective apologies. Similar to other literature on apology, this finding suggests that although mothers may be willing to apologize when needed, knowing and implementing an effective apology is challenging.
... In Bentley's (2018) as well as Coombs and Holladay's research (2012), the acceptability was used to examine the appropriateness of responses. Second, the stakeholder's perceived sincerity of the response is positively related to the appropriateness (e.g., Choi & Chung, 2013;Ebesu Hubbard et al., 2013;Lwin et al., 2017). Because an insincere message is deceptive in its character, the stakeholders may not trust what the organization said. ...
Combining different crisis response strategies of situational crisis communication theory, two studies examined the components of an appropriate crisis response strategy that includes an apology. Regarding the content of crisis responses, apologies that are combined with compensation were perceived to be more appropriate than those with scapegoating. In terms of the context of crisis responses, the two studies examined the timing of announcing the responses. In study 1, the appropriateness of an apology that was coupled with compensation decreased over time, while the appropriateness of the responses, in general, fluctuated over time in study 2. To further comprehend the mechanisms behind the appropriateness of the crisis responses, this research utilizes how well the organization responded to individuals’ dispositional needs to be heard. How well a response fulfilled the stakeholders’ needs to be heard explained 66 % of the variance of its appropriateness; the more the response was perceived to fulfill their desires to be heard, the more appropriate it was.
... Empathy implies that employees of higher education institutions should show remorse and be sympathetic to students, whereas timing means that employees should immediately offer an apology as soon as a complaint is registered by the student (Roschk & Kaiser, 2013). Similarly, Ebesu Hubbard, Hendrickson, Fehrenbach and Sur (2013) have noted that the service recovery process is effective when the apology is sincere and timely. This might assist the service provider in effectively communicating the expression of regret and remorsefulness (if in the wrong). ...
Recently, students have been very vocal against poor services being offered by higher education institutions. These services range from lectures, registration, classroom management, examinations, transport, library services, housing or residence to the cafeteria. There is a perception that higher education institutions are not doing enough to address the challenges students are encountering even when such grievances or concerns are raised. Therefore, this study analysed the impact of an apology and explanation on interactional justice with respect to both academic and non-academic services. In addition, students' perceptions of an apology, explanation and interactional justice were evaluated. Respondents were selected from a purposive sample of 430 full-time students drawn across three public higher education institutions and data were collected using a self-administered quantitative questionnaire. Data were analysed using the SPSS and Smart PLS3. The findings of this study showed that both an explanation and an apology have a positive and significant impact on interactional justice in higher education institutions. The results also showed that students were largely satisfied with the explanation given than their perception of an apology and interactional justice. This study underpins the need for institutional managers to foster interaction between the institution and aggrieved students. Higher education institutions should offer an apology and explanation if necessary to pacify any animosity that may arise as a result of a poorly delivered service.
... On the contrary, if the employees' emotional states are prevailingly positive, they can develop cooperation, communication, and goodwill among one other (Jehn & Bendersky, 2003), which relatively may prevent the conflict formations. At this point it is revealed that if there is a perception of sincere apology among employees, this can diminish their undesirable affective reaction (Hubbard, Hendrickson, Fehrenbach, & Sur, 2013). And, if there is an empathic work atmosphere in organizations, they can understand both their and others' emotions successfully (Ayoko et al., 2008). ...
This study was a quasi-experimental research, which aimed to understand the training needs of public Research & Development employees for effective conflict management, to develop customized conflict management training, and to exhibit the effects of receiving the customized training program and its persistency trend in comparison to receiving an alternative program as well as receiving no training. The study consisted of three phases: training development, training application, and training evaluation. The training development phase involved the examination of the prominent causes of conflicts and the opinions of R&D employees on effective conflict management skills. Qualitative data were gathered from 14 employees, 4 project managers, 3 professional trainers, and 2 academicians and analyzed by the MAXQDA program. The findings were employed in the development of a quantitative data collection tool and the tool was applied to 133 R & D employees (46 females and 87 males) by an online survey. The quantitative data were analyzed with SPSS 22 program and the findings were utilized in the development of the customized training program. Ninety six R&D employees were recruited by the convenience sampling method and grouped into three study groups; Experimental Group (13 females, 17 males), Control Group I (25 females, 8 males), and Control Group II (12 females, 21 males). During the training application phase, the experimental and control group members were provided with customized and non-customized training programs, respectively. This phase also involved the pre, post, and follow-up training measurements of the study groups. In the training evaluation phase, by using a mixed ANOVA method, the effects of the customized training program were investigated in comparison to receiving alternative training as well as no training. The results showed that receiving conflict management training (customized and non-customized) was effective in increasing functional conflict management skills. The scores of these groups were significantly higher than those of the group which received no training. Although the differences in the scores of the Experimental Group and Control Group I did not differ significantly in the follow-up training measurements, for Control Group II (received no training), conflict management scores were significantly lower.
Researchers focus on non-verbal communication to better understand how relationships of various types are initiated, maintained, deepened, and sometimes terminated. Non-verbal communication is typically less filtered than verbal communication, thus non-verbal cues often reveal the “truth” of what is happening inside a relationship. However, we know less about non-verbal cues in relationships in trouble—ones that experience turmoil. Turmoil emerges in relationships going through turbulence, defined as periods of uncertainty and flux in partner interdependence during significant relationship transitions. Non-verbal communication central to romantic relationships experiencing turmoil and turbulence is the focus of this chapter, with specific attention paid to touch/affection, proxemics, eye behaviour, vocalics, and dyadic synchrony.
Purpose: sponsorships involving foreign brands are ubiquitous, but those involving a company from an animosity-evoking country can adversely affect rather than enhance domestic consumers’ attitude towards the brand. This paper explains the mechanisms by which brand denigration occurs, introducing and validating a model of the animosity transfer process as well as considering if various framing and timing strategies attenuate or lead to adverse consumer responses.
Design/methodology/approach: study 1 tests the animosity transfer model, utilizing a scenario in which English consumers respond to a German brand sponsoring the England soccer team. Study 2 assesses the generalizability of the model in the context of Indian consumers’ responses to sponsorship of their cricket team by a Chinese company, and the extent to which an honest framing of the sponsorship choice through the announcement affects outcomes. Study 3 returns to an England-Germany country dyad, testing whether priming consumers with information about the sponsorship prior to a full announcement, attenuates or intensifies the impact of animosity on the studied outcomes.
Findings : the three studies demonstrate that when consumers learn of a sponsorship, it triggers an evaluation process in which the agonistic emotion (anger) they feel plays a pivotal role. More intense emotional appraisals weaken perceptions of sponsor-sponsee congruence, which together act as consecutive process variables mediating the relationship between animosity and sponsorship outcomes. Framing the sponsorship announcement with an honest justification for the partnership can improve outcomes but not amongst those with the highest animosity. Providing consumers with an advanced warning (preannouncement) of the sponsorship also amplifies consumers’ unfavorable evaluations showcasing how difficult animosity is to manage in this context.
Originality/value: the animosity transfer model aids understanding of the mechanisms by which animosity affects brand attitude for foreign (out-group) sponsors. It identifies how animosity generates agonistic emotions and in turn weakens perceived fit between the sponsor and sponsee, leading to adverse consumer responses.
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Using expectancy violation theory (EVT) as a guide, this study investigated the components of an ideal apology based on recipients’ perceptions of the importance of receiving specific elements of an apology following a relational transgression. Results revealed that some elements of apologies (accept responsibility, articulate an apology, and identify the specific wrong-doing) were rated as important across interpersonal transgressions, including inconsiderate acts, inappropriate actions, and broken promises, whereas some expected elements varied based on the type and/or severity of the transgression. These findings are contextualized within prior research on apology elements and lend support for the use of EVT as a framework for understanding the components of an ideal apology.
Awards: Sue DeWine Distinguished Book of the Year Communicating Forgiveness is the first book to take a truly communicative look at the process of forgiveness. Authors Vincent R. Waldron and Douglas L. Kelley provide a synthesis of the literature on forgiveness in relationships. Grounded in real-life forgiveness narratives, this interdisciplinary text (pulling from such related fields as psychology, counseling, family studies, peace studies, conflict management, religious studies, and organizational behavior) offers a hopeful framework for negotiating healthy and just responses to relational disappointments. Key Features Conceptualizes forgiveness as communication: Offering an alternative to predominant psychological approaches, this is the first book to focus on specific communication behaviors associated with forgiveness.; Provides an emotional connection: Real- life narratives from long-term couples, friends, family members, and coworkers make the text readable and relevant to today's relationships.; Includes a chapter on the practice of forgiveness: Practical advice and specific guidelines resonate well with readers as they apply to genuine friendships, romances, families, and workplaces.; Offers path-breaking theory development: The book organizes existing forgiveness research around a descriptive communication framework, demonstrating how existing psychological research can be enriched through the application of communication theories.; Presents a highly personal closing chapter: In the final chapter the authors provide a personal account of their experiences as researchers through “On the Drive Home” vignettes that convey key lessons learned. Intended Audience This is an excellent supplemental text for a variety of advanced undergraduate and graduate courses such as Conflict Management, Interpersonal Communication, Family Communication, Communication in Personal Relationships, Psychology of Personal Relationships, Counseling, and Peace Studies in the departments of Communication, Psychology, Family Studies, and Counseling.
Therapists and theologians claim that the process of forgiveness is essential to the restoration of damaged relationships, but this possibility has received limited empirical attention. Furthermore, the role of an offender's communicative behavior in the forgiveness process remains understudied. This project first analyzed an inductively derived list of communication behaviors to develop a taxonomy of forgiveness-seeking approaches used by 186 romantic partners. These were interpreted with reference to face- management, uncertainty reduction, and rule-negotiation approaches to relationship recovery. Associations between the types of forgiveness-seeking communication and several different measures of post-transgression relationship change were examined. Results indicated that relationships recovered significantly when offending partners used behaviors labeled as explicit acknowledgment, nonverbal assurance, and compensation. Significant communicative effects remained after the effects of transgression severity were controlled. Results are interpreted as partially supportive of the assumption that forgiveness-seeking communication facilitates recovery from relational damage.
This study was designed to test the effects of favor and apology on compliance and to explain any potential effect via indebtedness, gratitude, and liking. Two experiments were devised to accomplish these ends. In the first experiment favor and apology were varied in the absence of a transgression to see if apologizing for not providing a favor can be used proactively to increase compliance. In the second experiment favor and apology were varied in a more common scenario, following a transgression. Results show that favor has a positive effect on compliance mediated by gratitude when using a general prosocial request and by liking when using a more altruistic request. Results also suggest that apology has a positive effect on liking and that apology has an indirect effect on compliance under certain conditions.
Our review summarizes and integrates existing research on interpersonal conflicts that are difficult to resolve. Research indicates that interpersonal conflicts can adversely impact families, individual health, team functioning, and intercultural relations. Hence, we need to better understand protracted disputes. We focus on two research programs directly related to interpersonal conflict (serial arguments and perpetual problems) and a third area of research that takes a macro approach to studying intractable conflict. We combine elements of the three approaches into an integrative framework that suggests nine questions worthy of future research.
While most scholars view interactional argument as a single conversational event, the phenomenon can also be seen as a serial episode that occurs and recurs in everyday life. This essay presents a model of serial argument with supporting data.
Since it is not clear in what contexts perceived understanding is important in the development of relationships, the present study addressed whether perceived understanding is as important initially in the development of a relationship as in later stages. Analysis indicated that perceived understanding is less important in this study where subjects were in an initial stage of development of a relationship than in an earlier study where subjects were in a later stage. Perhaps perceived understanding may index intensity since it appears to be more important later.
A series of studies investigating cultural differences in apology usage in unsolicited email advertising messages (i.e., SPAM) are reported. Study 1 documented that in comparison to American SPAM, a greater percentage of Korean SPAM included apologies. The next five studies (Ns= 516, 3132, 662, 524, 536) tested various explanations for cross-cultural differences in uses of, and responses to, apologies. Findings indicated that advertising messages containing apologies were not necessarily more effective than advertising messages without apologies. Koreans, however, considered advertising messages with apologies as more credible and normal and exhibited a greater tendency to model other people's apology use than did Americans. Thus, the frequent presence of apologies in Korean unsolicited email advertising is likely to be based on Koreans' modeling behavior (i.e., a greater tendency to follow social norms).
120 undergraduates were asked to imagine themselves as the central character in a scenario in which they inadvertently bumped into another person in a public place. The actor's responsibility for the incident and the amount of harm done to the "victim" were systematically manipulated. As hypothesized, apologies were used in a perfunctory manner (saying "Pardon me" and then going about one's business) when the consequences of the event were minor. As the consequences became more negative, Ss employed an increased number of apology components, such as saying they were sorry, expressing remorse, and offering to help the victim. When high responsibility and high consequences coexisted, Ss were most likely to employ self-castigation and explicitly request forgiveness. Results support the hypothesis that as the severity of a social predicament increases, so does both the use of nonperfunctory apologies and the number of components employed in apologies. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)