Putting empathic feelings into words during times of crisis: The impact of differential verbal empathy expressions on organizational reputation

Fannes, Gijs; Claeys, An‐Sofie

doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2022.102183

Cited by 10 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…A second implication of the current research relates to service organizations' demonstrating their empathy towards others on their social media pages to cultivate potential reciprocal empathy. As shown in other studies, when empathy is shown by an individual it is likely that it will be received and returned in a reciprocal manner (Fannes and Claeys, 2022). Therefore, service organizations should seek to demonstrate empathy in the following ways through their social media pages.…”

Section: Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 90%

I'd better say something! How empathy shapes bystander psychological reactance and intervention to online trolling of service organizations

Mulcahy

Riedel

Keating

et al. 2023

JOSM

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PurposeOnline trolling is a detrimental behavior for consumers and service businesses. Although online trolling research is steadily increasing, service research has yet to thoroughly explore how this behavior impacts businesses. Further, the role of bystanders, consumers who witness a victim (business) being trolled, remains largely unexplored. The purpose of this paper is thus to introduce online trolling to the service literature and begin to identify when (types of online troll content) and why (empathy and psychological reactance) bystanders are likely to intervene and support a service business being trolled by posting positive eWOM.Design/methodology/approachThis research uses a two-study (Study 1 n = 313; Study 2 n = 472) experimental design with scenarios of a service business experiencing online trolling (moral versus sadistic). Participants' responses as bystanders were collected via an online survey.FindingsResults reveal bystanders are more likely to post positive eWOM to support a service organization experiencing sadistic trolling. Psychological reactance is shown to mediate the relationship between trolling type and positive eWOM. Further, spotlight analysis demonstrates that bystanders with higher levels of empathy are more likely to post positive eWOM, whereas bystanders with low levels of empathy are likely to have a significantly higher level of psychological reactance.Originality/valueThis research is among the first in the service literature to specifically explore the consumer misbehavior of online trolling. Further, it provides new perspectives to online trolling by probing the role of bystanders and when and why they are likely to support service organizations being trolled.

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Section: Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 90%

I'd better say something! How empathy shapes bystander psychological reactance and intervention to online trolling of service organizations

Mulcahy

Riedel

Keating

et al. 2023

JOSM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Moreover, the crash received wide news coverage, and the terrifying details of the last moments of these people haunt us to this day.Organizational crises are common, and stakeholders have high expectations and demands about how companies should handle difficult situations. Crisis management has proliferated in the past 30 years, for example, developing theories (Benoit, 1995;Coombs, 1995), studying the effects of crisis response strategies on stakeholder perceptions (Fannes & Claeys, 2022;Pace et al, 2010), exploring affect from the contingency perspective of strategic conflict management (Jin & Cameron, 2004, and incorporating emotion into crisis communication research (Coombs & Tachkova, 2023a, 2023b. Interestingly, most of the existing research focuses on what should be said and done in the crisis response phase; only a few examine the postcrisis communication efforts of organizations (Coombs, 2023;Tachkova, 2020).The postcrisis phase of the crisis management cycle deals with follow-up efforts after the crisis has ended and evaluating crisis communication efforts to ensure the organization is better prepared for the next crisis.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Expanding victim‐centred postcrisis communication through memorials: A case study of Lufthansa's communication efforts following the 2015 Germanwings plane crash

Tachkova

2024

Contingencies & Crisis Mgmt

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Most of the existing literature on crisis communication focuses on the crisis response immediately following a crisis. There is a dearth of research examining postcrisis communication efforts. Postcrisis communication is especially important in the context of tragic crises, which leave stakeholders deeply affected and traumatized. This paper examines the multifaceted nature of memorials and their significance in postcrisis communication. Using the 2015 Germanwings crash as an illustrative case study, the paper highlights how memorials serve as artifacts of grief, remembrance and celebration of life. Postcrisis communication that centres on victim needs is a keystone to better crisis management. Moreover, I argue that postcrisis communication should facilitate healing by serving the needs of victims, which supersede those of organizations. The paper examines the notions of victim‐centred crisis communication and ethics of care by looking at memorials as artefacts of postcrisis communication.

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How sorry are you? Intensified apologies and the mediating role of perceived remorse in corporate crisis communication

Georgiadou

2023

Public Relations Review

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Putting empathic feelings into words during times of crisis: The impact of differential verbal empathy expressions on organizational reputation

Cited by 10 publications

References 54 publications

I'd better say something! How empathy shapes bystander psychological reactance and intervention to online trolling of service organizations

I'd better say something! How empathy shapes bystander psychological reactance and intervention to online trolling of service organizations

Expanding victim‐centred postcrisis communication through memorials: A case study of Lufthansa's communication efforts following the 2015 Germanwings plane crash

How sorry are you? Intensified apologies and the mediating role of perceived remorse in corporate crisis communication

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