Published January 23, 2014
Dr. Carl Thameling, associate professor of communication at University of Louisiana
at Monroe, recently presented at the 99th Annual National Communication Association
Conference in Washington, D.C.
Thameling presented the article, “Everyday Experience of Account-Making Process among
Japanese and American Students: The Effects of Offense Severity and Reproach on Accounts,”
along with co-author, Professor Takuji Shimada of Tenri University in Japan.
The article marks the third collaboration between the professors that presents a cross-cultural
study with a focus on the use of account making.
According to Thameling, the paper focuses on the use of specific types of accounts,
which are used to repair an image and maintain positive relationships.
The four major types of accounts analyzed in the paper are: concessions (or apologies),
excuses, justification, and refusals (denials).
In the study, both Japanese and American subjects were asked to judge the severity
of various offenses.
Through their research, the professors found that the Japanese subjects were more
likely to judge the severity of an offense through the lens of a social norm, while
the American subjects used a self-serving perspective to judge the severity of an
offense.
Shimada and Thameling are now in the process of submitting their work to publishers.
