Why group apologies succeed and fail: intergroup forgiveness and the role of primary and secondary emotions

• Published in: Journal of personality and social psychology Vol. 102; no. 2; p. 306
• Main Authors: Wohl, Michael J A, Hornsey, Matthew J, Bennett, Shannon H
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.02.2012
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Afghanistan - ethnology; Canada; Emotions; Empathy; Female; Forgiveness; Group Processes; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Social Identification; Trust - psychology; Young Adult; Canada; Afghanistan

It is widely assumed that official apologies for historical transgressions can lay the groundwork for intergroup forgiveness, but evidence for a causal relationship between intergroup apologies and forgiveness is limited. Drawing on the infrahumanization literature, we argue that a possible reason f...