On the Influence of Apologies on the Likelihood of Lawsuits in Cases of Perceived Medical Negligence: Analysis of Archival and Experimental Data.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Disappointing medical care (DMC) encompasses cases of medical failures, malpractice, or errors. Literature suggests that individuals' perceptions of harm resulting from medical procedures influence their intention to seek legal recourse and that apologies may mitigate the inclination for legal action.

Objective

Here, we aim to scrutinize and potentially challenge this prevailing notion.

Methods

We conducted 4 studies using a dataset of social media posts detailing possible DMC incidents to which we linked a proxy for legal action, specifically, future posts related to legal action. Study 1 used a machine learning model to predict a proxy for an intent to file a lawsuit based on the content of 3815 posts. Two preregistered crowdsourcing studies (N=1115) asse

SUBMITTER: Arbel-Groissman N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12569484 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature