There are six components to an
apology - and the more of them you include when you say you're sorry,
the more effective your apology will be, according to new research.
But if you're pressed for time or space, there are two elements that are the most critical to having your apology accepted.
"Apologies really do work, but you should make sure you hit
as many of the six key components as possible," said Roy Lewicki, lead
author of the study and professor emeritus of management and human
resources at The Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business.
In two separate experiments, Lewicki and his co-authors
tested how 755 people reacted to apologies containing anywhere from one
to all six of these elements:
1. Expression of regret2. Explanation of what went wrong
3. Acknowledgment of responsibility
4. Declaration of repentance5. Offer of repair
6. Request for forgiveness
The research is published in the May 2016 issue of the journal Negotiation and Conflict Management Research.
Lewicki's co-authors were Robert Lount, associate professor of
management and human resources at Ohio State, and Beth Polin of Eastern
Kentucky University.
While the best apologies contained all six elements, not all of these components are equal, the study found."Our findings showed that the most important component is an acknowledgement of responsibility. Say it is your fault, that you made a mistake," Lewicki said.
The second most important element was an offer of repair.
"One concern about apologies is that talk is cheap. But by saying, 'I'll fix what is wrong,' you're committing to take action to undo the damage," he said.
The next three elements were essentially tied for third in effectiveness: expression of regret, explanation of what went wrong and declaration of repentance.
The least effective element of an apology is a request for forgiveness. "That's the one you can leave out if you have to," Lewicki said.
The first study involved 333 adults recruited online through Amazon's MTURK program. All the participants read a scenario in which they were the manager of an accounting department that was hiring a new employee.
At a previous job, the potential employee had filed an incorrect tax return that understated a client's capital gains income. When confronted about the issue, the job candidate apologized.
The participants were told that the apology contained one,
three or all six of the apology components. They were then asked to rate
on a scale of 1 (not at all) to 5 (very) how effective, credible and
adequate the apology statement would be.
The second study included 422 undergraduate students. The
students read the same scenario as in the first study, but instead of
being told which components the apology contained, they read an actual
apology that included anywhere from one to six statements based on the
six elements. For example, for acknowledgment of responsibility, the
apology statement read "I was wrong in what I did, and I accepted
responsibility for my actions."
They again rated how effective, credible and adequate the apology statement would be.
The results of the two studies were not identical, but they
were very similar, Lewicki said. For both studies, the more elements
that the apology contained, the more effective it was rated.
When the elements were evaluated one at a time, there was
general consistency in the importance of the components across the two
studies, with slight variations. But in both studies, the request for
forgiveness was seen as least important.
In both studies, half the respondents were told the job
applicant's incorrect tax return was related to competence: He was not
knowledgeable in all relevant tax codes. The other half were told it was
related to integrity: He knowingly filed the tax return incorrectly.
The value of each of the six components was the same whether
the apology was related to failures of competence or integrity. But
overall, participants were less likely to accept apologies when the job
applicant showed a lack of integrity versus a lack of competence.
Lewicki noted that, in this work, participants simply read
apology statements. But the emotion and voice inflection of a spoken
apology may have powerful effects, as well.
"Clearly, things like eye contact and appropriate expression
of sincerity are important when you give a face-to-face apology," he
said.
The six elements of an effective apology, according to science
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