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. 2022 Apr 25:13:809513.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.809513. eCollection 2022.

Apology and Its Acceptance: Perceived Reconciliatory Attitudes Reduce Outgroup Dehumanization

Wen Jie Jin  1 , Sang Hee Park  1 , Joonha Park  2
Affiliations

Apology and Its Acceptance: Perceived Reconciliatory Attitudes Reduce Outgroup Dehumanization

Wen Jie Jin et al. Front Psychol. .

Abstract

Based on real-life intergroup animosities originating from a historical conflict, the current study examined how the perceived stance of the outgroup about the conflict affects the dehumanization of the outgroup. In Study 1 (N = 120), Korean undergraduates attributed more human nature to the Japanese after reading an article that the Japanese government did (vs. refused to) issue an official apology for a historical wrong. In turn, the more human nature assigned to the Japanese predicted higher expectations about positive mutual relations in the future. Similarly, in Study 2 (N = 209), Japanese undergraduates attributed more human uniqueness to Koreans after reading an article that an official apology for a historical wrong from Japan was accepted (vs. rejected) by Koreans. The higher the perceived human uniqueness of Koreans was, the higher were the willingness to help and the expectations of a positive relationship in the future. The findings demonstrate how mutual dehumanization can be reduced as a result of the other side's reconciliatory stances and can further contribute to improving intergroup relations.

Keywords: acceptance; apology; historical conflict; human nature; human uniqueness; intergroup relations.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
HN mediating the relationship between condition and willingness to help (Study 1). Unstandardized coefficients are presented. Coefficients in parentheses denote direct effects after controlling for indirect effects. **p < 0.01.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
HN mediating the relationship between condition and willingness to forgive (Study 1). Unstandardized coefficients are presented. Coefficients in parentheses denote direct effects after controlling for indirect effects. **p < 0.01.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
HN mediating the relationship between condition and expectation of a future relationship (Study 1). Unstandardized coefficients are presented. Coefficients in parentheses denote direct effects after controlling for indirect effects. **p < 0.01.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
HU mediating the relationship between perceived apology acceptance and willingness to help (Study 2). Unstandardized coefficients are presented. Coefficients in parentheses denote direct effects after controlling for indirect effects. **p < 0.01.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
HU mediating the relationship between perceived apology acceptance and willingness to apologize (Study 2). Unstandardized coefficients are presented. Coefficients in parentheses denote direct effects after controlling for indirect effects. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
HU mediating the relationship between perceived apology acceptance and expectation of a future relationship (Study 2). Unstandardized coefficients are presented. Coefficients in parentheses denote direct effects after controlling for indirect effects. **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.
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