(iPoster) Say You’re Sorry: The Effectiveness of Apologies following Political Scandals

• In Event: Poster Session: Political Psychology I & II
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: Political Psychology I

Abstract

When do voters forgive perpetrators of political scandals? Scandals are a controversial part of politics that can have bleak implications for both the people involved, as well as governmental trust at large. The proposed study examines apologies as a potential strategy for gaining back the public's trust following an individual transgression. The literature in political science has long established the detrimental influence that scandals can have on politics, but much less attention has been dedicated to studying the response to scandals, beyond merely a decrease in trust and positive candidate evaluations. Typically, leaders’ primary motivation is to be re-elected; therefore, one might expect that taking responsibility for wrongdoing is counterintuitive. We examine why scandalous politicians may decide to issue apologies, as well as the psychological impact these apologies can have on voters that could make them more forgiving towards remorseful politicians who have committed transgressions. Using a survey experiment, we randomized the type of scandal (extramarital affair versus financial scandal) and the quality of the apology (depending on whether it possessed the five components of a sincere apology: acknowledgment of the behavior, an expression of regret for having committed the behavior, the reassurance that the behavior will not continue, and an offer of reconciliation). We tested whether a leader apologizing may enable them to win back public trust, elicit feelings of forgiveness, and deter losing votes after a misdeed. The findings revealed significant effects, indicating that apologies do matter in mitigating scandals, with variations depending on the type of scandal. Understanding the impact that apologies have on scandals will allow us to a) observe other contexts in which apologies may arise, particularly in US politics, b) examine one possible remedy for controversial behavior from elected officials, and c) gain a sense of when voters forgive leaders for wrongdoing and others do not.

Authors

• Alesha Lewis, Southwestern University

• Deli Yang