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The psychology, ethics and law of apologies
By Lauren | July 16, 2010
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of joining reknowned psychiatrist Aaron Lazare and NY Times ethicist Randy Cohen on the Diane Rehm show on NPR. Our topic was apologies, and we spent about an hour kibbitzing the best and worst recent apologies. As a long-time fan of Ms. Rehm I had a ball, and hope our listeners did as well.
Dr. Lazare is the author of a wonderfully thoughtful book titled On Apology. He has conducted extensive research into what makes an apology work and what doesn’t, and his book provides invaluable insight into the psychology of apologies. I strongly recommend On Apology to anyone who really wants to understand how apology and forgiveness can heal the human heart.
Randy Cohen writes “The Ethicist” weekly column for The New York Times, one of my preferred reads. I always knew he was brilliant, and was delighted to discover that he’s also hilariously funny. No surprise that he had many valuable insights into the ethics of apology. After all, ethics are all about considering how one’s actions affect other people, and apologizing after a mistake is something that honest, humble and ethical people need to do.
If you heard us yesterday, please drop a comment here. And if you didn’t, our segment is available online at NPR.org. Dr. Lazare and Mr. Cohen made some wonderful observations. You can listen to us here.
Topics: Apologies, Lauren Recommends, Risk Management, Social Ethics, ethics |