Why women apologize more than men: Gender differences in thresholds for perceiving offensive behavior

Psychological Science

Volumn 21, Issue 11, 2010, Pages 1649-1655

  Schumann, Karina ^a   Ross, Michael ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO   (Canada)

Author keywords

apology; gender differences; interpersonal communication; interpersonal relationships

Indexed keywords

ADOLESCENT; ADULT; ARTICLE; DECISION MAKING; FEMALE; GENDER IDENTITY; HUMAN; HUMAN RELATION; IMAGINATION; MALE; PERCEPTION; RECALL; SOCIAL BEHAVIOR; SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY;

ADOLESCENT; ADULT; FEMALE; GENDER IDENTITY; HUMANS; IMAGINATION; INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS; JUDGMENT; MALE; MENTAL RECALL; SOCIAL BEHAVIOR; SOCIAL PERCEPTION; SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY; SOCIAL VALUES; STEREOTYPING; YOUNG ADULT;

EID: 78649576506     PISSN: 09567976     EISSN: 14679280     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/0956797610384150     Document Type: Article

References (32)

1. Barrett, L.F., Robin, L., Pietromonaco, P.R., & Eyssell, K.M. (1998). Are women the more emotional sex? Evidence from emotional experiences in social context. Cognition & Emotion, 12, 555-578.
2. Bavelas, J.B. (2004). An analysis of formal apologies by Canadian churches to First Nations (Occasional Paper No. 1). (Available from the Centre for Studies in Religion and Society, University of Victoria, Box 1700 Stn CSC, Victoria, BC, Canada V8W 2Y2).
3. Belushi, J. (2006). Real men don't apologize. New York, NY: Hyperion.
4. Bybee, J. (1998). The emergence of gender differences in guilt during adolescence. In J. Bybee (Ed.), Guilt and children (pp. 113-125). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
5. Cribb, R. (2010). When 'sorry' is harder than the hardest word. Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.thestar.com/living/article/780853--when-sorry-is-harder-than-the-hardest-word.
6. Darby, B.W., & Schlenker, B.R. (1982). Children's reactions to apologies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 43, 742-753.
7. Eisenberg, N., & Lennon, R. (1983). Sex differences in empathy and related capacities. Psychological Bulletin, 94, 100-131.
8. Engel, B. (2001). The power of apology. New York, NY: Wiley.
9. Gilligan, C. (1994). In a different voice: Women's conceptions of self and of morality. New York, NY: Garland.
10. Hayes, A.F. (2009). Beyond Baron and Kenny: Statistical mediation analysis in the new millennium. Communication Monographs, 76, 408-420.
11. Holmes, J. (1989). Sex differences and apologies: One aspect of communicative competence. Applied Linguistics, 10, 194-213.
12. Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1973). On the psychology of prediction. Psychological Review, 80, 237-251.
13. Keltner, D., Young, R.C., Heerey, E.A., Oemig, C., & Monarch, N.D. (1998). Teasing in hierarchical and intimate relations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 1231-1247.
14. Lazare, A. (2004). On apology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
15. Lutwak, N., & Ferrari, J.R. (1996). Moral affect and cognitive processes: Differentiating shame from guilt among men and women. Personality and Individual Differences, 21, 891-896.
16. MacDonald, G., & Leary, M.R. (2005). Why does social exclusion hurt? The relationship between social and physical pain. Psychological Bulletin, 131, 202-223.
17. MacKinnon, D.P., Lockwood, C.M., Hoffman, J.M., West, S.G., & Sheets, V. (2002). A comparison of methods to test mediation and other intervening variable effects. Psychological Methods, 7, 83-104.
18. McCullough, M.E., Worthington, E.L., Jr., & Rachal, K.C. (1997). Interpersonal forgiving in close relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 321-336.
19. Miller, A.J., Worthington, E.L., Jr., & McDaniel, M.A. (2008). Gender and forgiveness: A meta-analytic review and research agenda. Journal of Social & Clinical Psychology, 27, 843-876.
20. Miller, J.B. (1984). The development of women's sense of self (Working Paper No. 12). Wellesley, MA: Stone Center for Developmental Services and Studies.
21. Ohbuchi, K., Kameda, M., & Agarie, N. (1989). Apology as aggression control: Its role in mediating appraisal of and response to harm. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 219-227.
22. Preacher, K.J., & Hayes, A.F. (2004). SPSS and SAS procedures for estimating indirect effects in simple mediation models. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 36, 717-731.
23. Ross, L. (1977). The intuitive psychologist and his shortcomings: Distortions in the attribution process. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 10, pp. 173-220). New York, NY: Academic Press.
24. Scher, S.J., & Darley, J.M. (1997). How effective are the things people say to apologize? Effects of the realization of the apology speech act. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 26, 127-140.
25. Schmitt, M., Gollwitzer, M., Forster, N., & Montada, L. (2004). Effects of objective and subjective account components on forgiving. Journal of Social Psychology, 144, 465-485.
26. Schumann, K., & Ross, M. (2010). The antecedents, nature and effectiveness of political apologies for historical injustices. In D.R. Bobocel, A.C. Kay, M.P. Zanna, & J.M. Olson (Eds.), The Ontario Symposium: Vol. 11. The psychology of justice and legitimacy (pp. 299-324). New York, NY: Psychology Press.
27. Shrout, P.E., & Bolger, N. (2002). Mediation in experimental and nonexperimental studies: New procedures and recommendations. Psychological Methods, 7, 422-445.
28. Tamres, L.K., Janicki, D., & Helgeson, V.S. (2002). Sex differences in coping behavior: A meta-analytic review and an examination of relative coping. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6, 2-30.
29. Tannen, D. (1996). I'm sorry, I won't apologize. Retrieved January 13, 2010, from https://www.9.georgetown.edu/faculty/tannend/nyt072196.htm.
30. Tannen, D. (1999, April/May). Contrite makes right. Civilization, 6, 67-70.
31. Tannen, D. (2001). You just don't understand: Women and men in conversation. New York, NY: William Morrow.
32. Unruh, A.M. (1996). Gender differences in clinical pain experience. Pain, 65, 123-167.