Credible Forgiveness: When do states apologize for wartime crimes?
For those attending in-person, the entrance to CESS is located at George Street Mews and you will need to ring the bell when you have arrived.
When do countries apologize for wartime crimes? Why do some refuse to apologize altogether? Apologies often serve as the vital first step to reconciliation between former wartime foes. Yet, to date, International Relations offers few answers as to when a country will issue a sincere apology to signal goodwill.
Drawing on the costly signalling literature in Economics and International Relations, I argue that when the recipient can credibly promise that it will not exploit the apology for further compensation in the future, the sender is more likely to give a stronger apology. I use the case of Japan to test my arguments, a former Axis Power that continues to apologize to multiple countries for war crimes committed during the Second World War.
To pin down the causal mechanism, I design a stylized randomized experiment among Japanese citizens, which will accompany case study research.
Date:
14 February 2024, 14:00
Venue:
Centre for Experimental Social Sciences, George Street OX1 2AA
Venue Details:
This is a hybrid event--interested participants can attend in person at Cess's conference room or virtually via Zoom.
Speaker:
Gabriel Fung (University of Oxford)
Organising department:
Nuffield College
Organiser:
Noah Bacine (University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address:
noah.bacine@nuffield.ox.ac.uk
Host:
Noah Bacine (University of Oxford)
Part of:
CESS Colloquium Series
Booking required?:
Recommended
Booking url:
https://cess-nuffield.nuff.ox.ac.uk/events/colloquium/gabriel-fung-university-of-oxford/
Booking email:
noah.bacine@nuffield.ox.ac.uk
Cost:
N/A
Audience:
Public
Editors:
Noah Bacine,
Martina Beretta
