The Role of Apologies in the Settlement of Civil Disputes

道歉在解决民事纠纷中的作用

• 批准号: 0241355
• 负责人: Jennifer Robbennolt
• 金额: $ 4.55万
• 依托单位: University of Missouri-Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2003
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2003-03-01 至 2005-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0241355&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Role; Apologies; Settlement; Civil; Disputes

Even though it may be appropriate to offer an apology to a person who one has injured, it is often said that U.S. legal culture discourages apologies due to fears of legal liability. In recent years, however, several legal commentators have suggested that defendants in civil lawsuits should be encouraged to apologize to opposing parties. Proponents of apologies in civil litigation believe that apologies will, among other things, avert lawsuits and promote settlement, while providing greater satisfaction to injured parties. Despite this speculation, there has been very little empirical exploration of the ways in which apologies might affect legal decision-making in civil cases, the boundary conditions on any such effects, or the mechanisms through which such effects might occur. This project consists of three studies designed to explore the responses of legal actors to apologies in the context of a civil case. The research examines the role of apologies in settlement negotiation, examining whether and under what conditions apologies increase the willingness of injured parties to engage in settlement talks or the likelihood a settlement offer will be accepted, and the ways in which apologies influence the underlying attributions that may facilitate settlement. The first two studies focus on "safe" apologies, apologies that merely express sympathy for the injured party but do not admit fault, or apologies that are protected by an evidentiary rule. By asking individual participants to take the role of injured parties (Study 1) and attorneys to take the role of their attorneys (Study 2) in hypothetical situations, these studies investigate the influence of "safe" apologies on the settlement decisions of these potential litigants and their attorneys. The moderating effects of the severity of the injury and the evidence of the defendant's fault are also examined. The third study focuses on "compelled" and "delegated" apologies and how civil litigants' interpretations and settlement decisions are influenced by apologies offered under pressure from the injured party or a third-party (such as a mediator or a judge) or offered by proxy (i.e., via an attorney). A secondary goal of this project is to acquire a picture of attorneys' current practices and attitudes with respect to apologies. While it is the intuition and experience of legal commentators that apologies are rarely considered by attorneys, let alone offered, no systematic data has been collected about 1) whether they have or would advise a client to apologize and under what circumstances, 2) their reactions to the new statutes protecting apologies, or 3) the barriers they see to apologies in civil litigation. Therefore, attorney participants are also surveyed about their current practices and approaches. The project informs psychological theories of apology by improving understanding of the effects of apology on judgment and decision-making, the factors that moderate these effects and the mechanisms by which such effects are mediated. The project also enhances the practice of law by helping to educate practitioners and practitioners-to-be about the uses of apology in civil litigation, and informs legal reform by examining the potential effects of the emerging statutory protection of apologies.

虽然向被自己伤害的人道歉是合适的，但人们常说，由于担心法律责任，美国的法律文化不鼓励道歉。然而，近年来，一些法律评论人士建议，应该鼓励民事诉讼中的被告向对方道歉。支持在民事诉讼中道歉的人认为，道歉除其他外，可以避免诉讼，促进和解，同时为受害方提供更大的满足感。尽管有这种推测，但对于道歉可能影响民事案件法律决策的方式、任何此类影响的边界条件或此类影响可能发生的机制，很少有实证探索。本项目由三个研究组成，旨在探讨民事案件背景下法律行为者对道歉的反应。该研究考察了道歉在和解谈判中的作用，考察了道歉是否以及在什么条件下会增加受害方参与和解谈判的意愿，或和解提议被接受的可能性，以及道歉影响可能促进和解的潜在归因的方式。前两项研究关注的是“安全”道歉，即仅对受害方表示同情但不承认过错的道歉，或者受证据规则保护的道歉。通过要求个体参与者扮演受害方（研究1）和律师在假设情况下扮演他们的律师（研究2），这些研究调查了“安全”道歉对这些潜在诉讼当事人及其律师的和解决定的影响。还审查了伤害严重程度的缓和作用和被告过失的证据。第三项研究侧重于“强迫”和“委托”道歉，以及民事诉讼当事人的解释和和解决定如何受到受害方或第三方（如调解员或法官）在压力下提供的道歉或代理人（即通过律师）提供的道歉的影响。这个项目的第二个目标是了解律师目前在道歉方面的做法和态度。虽然根据法律评论员的直觉和经验，律师很少考虑道歉，更不用说道歉了，但没有收集到系统的数据：1)他们是否已经或将建议客户道歉，以及在什么情况下道歉；2)他们对保护道歉的新法规的反应；3)他们在民事诉讼中看到道歉的障碍。因此，律师参与者也调查了他们目前的做法和方法。该项目通过提高对道歉对判断和决策的影响、调节这些影响的因素以及这种影响的中介机制的理解，为道歉的心理学理论提供了信息。该项目还通过帮助教育从业人员和准从业人员在民事诉讼中如何使用道歉来加强法律实践，并通过研究新出现的法定道歉保护的潜在影响，为法律改革提供信息。