Contrite. And done right

Sorry seems to be the hardest word. For those doing the apologising, at least. here's how to deal with a gesture that's less than sincere

- Karishma Kuenzang

If the apology comes with excuses or justifications, it undermines the apology itself. Adam Levine's, for hitting on another woman while his wife, Behati Prinsloo, was pregnant, clarified that it wasn't cheating. It felt insincere.

Being wronged is bad enough. Hearing a half-baked apology is worse. Why be the bigger person, when you can be the same dignified size? Experts offer help with responding to a non-apology, holding people accountable, and telling someone what they did was not actually OK.