Crisis Management and Corporate Apology: The Effects of Causal Attribution and Apology Type on Publics’ Cognitive and Affective Responses

This study examined how corporate apologies influence cognitive and affective public responses (public anger, negative impression, distrust) during an aviation crisis. A total of 192 participants were exposed to one of the two types of causal attribution (internal vs. external) and one of the two types of corporate apology (responsibility-oriented vs. sympathy-oriented). This study found that a responsibility-oriented apology significantly more reduced public anger, negative impression, and distrust of an airline company than a sympathy-oriented apology in an internal/controllable crisis situation. Theoretical and practical implications as well as directions for future research are discussed.