Future cooperation at work emerges when apologies are sincere: the importance of forgiveness and trust restoration

Purpose - The present study examines the nexus between workplace relationship conflict, perceived sincere apology, interpersonal forgiveness, trust restoration and future cooperation at work after a trust violation episode has occurred. Design/methodology/approach - The data for the analysis were collected from 226 employees using scenarios and survey methods and quantitative techniques were applied to analyze the data. Findings - The results show that perceived sincerity of apology serves as a mediating variable in the link between workplace relationship conflict and interpersonal forgiveness. Interpersonal forgiveness is found to be positively related to future cooperation at work with the mediating role of trust restoration. Practical implications - The findings of the study have practical implications for strategy makers, human resource managers and practitioners interested in stimulating future cooperation at work after a trust violation episode has occurred. The study advocates that sincere apology and interpersonal forgiveness serve as an important link to recovering from trust violation damages and cultivating future cooperation at work after a relationship conflict has occurred. Originality/value - The findings of the present study bring new insights on the role played by sincere apology and interpersonal forgiveness in facilitating trust restoration and future cooperation at work after a relationship conflict episode has occurred.