Consolation Behavior
Consolation is how companies restore trust with broader stakeholder groups (customers, investors, public) even when direct victims have been addressed.
Consolation without structural change is checkbook apology - it signals 'we'll pay to make this go away' not 'we're genuinely committed to preventing this.'
After conflicts, bystanders sometimes console victims - approaching distressed individuals, grooming them, sitting close. This isn't post-conflict affiliation (which involves the aggressor and victim). It's third-party consolation.
Why do bystanders console? It reduces group tension. When conflicts damage relationships, group cohesion suffers. Consolation helps restore group harmony even when direct reconciliation between aggressor and victim hasn't occurred.
A baboon can console a fight victim by grooming them. But if the baboon was involved in creating the conflict, and continues creating similar conflicts, consolation doesn't restore trust.
Business Application of Consolation Behavior
Consolation is how companies restore trust with broader stakeholder groups (customers, investors, public) even when direct victims have been addressed. Effective consolation requires genuine empathy (not self-focus), voluntary action beyond legal requirements, proportionality to harm caused, and combination of financial compensation with structural change. Consolation without structural change is 'checkbook apology' - signaling 'we'll pay to make this go away' rather than genuine commitment to prevention.