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The power of empathy : the dual impacts of an emotional voice in organizational crisis communication

Aurélie De Waele (UGent) , Lieze Schoofs (UGent) and An-Sofie Claeys (UGent)
(2020) JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH. 48(3). p.350-371
Author
Organization
Abstract
This study examines how sadness, expressed through the voice of a CEO of an organization in crisis, affects the public's perceptions in times of crisis. A first experiment shows that a sad voice increases the public's empathy toward the CEO, which results in positive attitudes toward the organization. However, at the same time, that sad voice results in negative attitudes toward the organization because it makes the CEO appear less powerful. A second experiment examined if the impact of an emotional voice depends on the crisis stage. The negative effect of vocal emotions due to reduced perceptions of powerfulness only occurs during the trigger event of the crisis. The positive effect of vocal expressions of sadness through increased empathy occurs throughout all stages of the crisis life cycle. These findings indicate that organizational spokespersons should not be afraid to express genuine emotions in their voices in times of crisis.
Keywords
Communication, Language and Linguistics, Crisis communication, nonverbal communication, emotions, empathy, voice, SOCIAL-DOMINANCE, EXPRESSIONS, FORGIVENESS, RESPONSES, SPEECH, SPOKESPERSONS, PERCEPTION, SIMULATION, CONTAGION, SADNESS

Citation

Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:

MLA
De Waele, Aurélie, et al. “The Power of Empathy : The Dual Impacts of an Emotional Voice in Organizational Crisis Communication.” JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH, vol. 48, no. 3, 2020, pp. 350–71, doi:10.1080/00909882.2020.1750669.
APA
De Waele, A., Schoofs, L., & Claeys, A.-S. (2020). The power of empathy : the dual impacts of an emotional voice in organizational crisis communication. JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH, 48(3), 350–371. https://doi.org/10.1080/00909882.2020.1750669
Chicago author-date
De Waele, Aurélie, Lieze Schoofs, and An-Sofie Claeys. 2020. “The Power of Empathy : The Dual Impacts of an Emotional Voice in Organizational Crisis Communication.” JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH 48 (3): 350–71. https://doi.org/10.1080/00909882.2020.1750669.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
De Waele, Aurélie, Lieze Schoofs, and An-Sofie Claeys. 2020. “The Power of Empathy : The Dual Impacts of an Emotional Voice in Organizational Crisis Communication.” JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH 48 (3): 350–371. doi:10.1080/00909882.2020.1750669.
Vancouver
1.
De Waele A, Schoofs L, Claeys A-S. The power of empathy : the dual impacts of an emotional voice in organizational crisis communication. JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH. 2020;48(3):350–71.
IEEE
[1]
A. De Waele, L. Schoofs, and A.-S. Claeys, “The power of empathy : the dual impacts of an emotional voice in organizational crisis communication,” JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 350–371, 2020.
@article{8661398,
  abstract     = {{This study examines how sadness, expressed through the voice of a CEO of an organization in crisis, affects the public's perceptions in times of crisis. A first experiment shows that a sad voice increases the public's empathy toward the CEO, which results in positive attitudes toward the organization. However, at the same time, that sad voice results in negative attitudes toward the organization because it makes the CEO appear less powerful. A second experiment examined if the impact of an emotional voice depends on the crisis stage. The negative effect of vocal emotions due to reduced perceptions of powerfulness only occurs during the trigger event of the crisis. The positive effect of vocal expressions of sadness through increased empathy occurs throughout all stages of the crisis life cycle. These findings indicate that organizational spokespersons should not be afraid to express genuine emotions in their voices in times of crisis.}},
  author       = {{De Waele, Aurélie and Schoofs, Lieze and Claeys, An-Sofie}},
  issn         = {{0090-9882}},
  journal      = {{JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH}},
  keywords     = {{Communication,Language and Linguistics,Crisis communication,nonverbal communication,emotions,empathy,voice,SOCIAL-DOMINANCE,EXPRESSIONS,FORGIVENESS,RESPONSES,SPEECH,SPOKESPERSONS,PERCEPTION,SIMULATION,CONTAGION,SADNESS}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{350--371}},
  title        = {{The power of empathy : the dual impacts of an emotional voice in organizational crisis communication}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1080/00909882.2020.1750669}},
  volume       = {{48}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}
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