Interpersonal forgiving in close relationships
01 Aug 1997-Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (American Psychological Association)-Vol. 73, Iss: 2, pp 321-336
TL;DR: Evidence is found consistent with the hypotheses that the relationship between receiving an apology from and forgiving one's offender is a function of increased empathy for the offender and that forgiving is uniquely related to conciliatory behavior and avoidance behavior toward the offending partner.
Abstract: Forgiving is a motivational transformation that inclines people to inhibit relationship-destructive responses and to behave constructively toward someone who has behaved destructively toward them. The authors describe a model of forgiveness based on the hypothesis that people forgive others to the extent that they experience empathy for them. Two studies investigated the empathy model of forgiveness. In Study 1, the authors developed measures of empathy and forgiveness. The authors found evidence consistent with the hypotheses that (a) the relationship between receiving an apology from and forgiving one's offender is a function of increased empathy for the offender and (b) that forgiving is uniquely related to conciliatory behavior and avoidance behavior toward the offending partner. In Study 2, the authors conducted an intervention in which empathy was manipulated to examine the empathy-forgiving relationship more closely. Results generally supported the conceptualization of forgiving as a motivational phenomenon and the empathy-forgiving link.
Citations
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TL;DR: A first look at the mediating role of marital quality in this association during the first 3 years of marriage based on three annual waves of data collected from 268 Chinese couples reveals emotional forgiveness contributes to longitudinal levels of marital stability through marital quality.
Abstract: Based on the Vulnerability Stress Adaptation model, this study examined the relationship between forgiveness and marital stability, and provides a first look at the mediating role of marital quality in this association during the first 3 years of marriage based on three annual waves of data collected from 268 Chinese couples. Tests of actor-partner interdependence mediation models revealed direct effects of decisional forgiveness and emotional forgiveness on the concurrent levels of marital stability for husbands, and indirect effects of emotional forgiveness on the concurrent and longitudinal levels of marital stability through marital quality for both husbands and wives. There was also an indirect effect of wives' emotional forgiveness on concurrent and longitudinal levels of husbands' marital stability through their wives' marital quality. Thus, emotional forgiveness, rather than decisional forgiveness, contributes to longitudinal levels of marital stability through marital quality. Theoretical implications and future directions for research are discussed.
12 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the ways religious people think about and make use of forgiveness to deal with hurtful experiences and found that for all participants their motivations and strategies to forgive could be classified as both secular and sacred.
Abstract: How do religious people think about and make use of forgiveness in their lives? Do religious beliefs promote forgiveness, and if so, how? Through qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with religious individuals (N = 10), we explored the ways religious people think about forgiveness and make use of forgiveness to deal with hurtful experiences. Results indicated that for all participants their motivations and strategies to forgive could be classified as both secular and sacred. The results also highlight the specific motivations to forgive and strategies used by religious individuals to achieve forgiveness, even for some terrible injustices. In addition to elaborating the why and how of forgiveness, the results highlight the fact that religious individuals are able to make use of the resources that their religious traditions have to offer while integrating these with secular motivations and strategies.
12 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the impact of buffering and magnifying effects on rumination, anger, and customer forgiveness in the event of service failures, and found that buffering effects are directly triggered by the relationship, whereas, the magnifying effect is primarily related to the customer cognitive processes.
Abstract: Purpose
Scholars have proposed that the negative effects of service failures can be countered by developing and maintaining high quality customer-company relationships or by providing excellent service recovery to customers While both strategies have been proposed as ways to overcome the negative effects of service failures, there are only a limited number of studies that have examined their joint effects The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by investigating the impact of these two strategies jointly on rumination (brooding and reflection), anger and customer forgiveness (revenge, avoidance and benevolence)
Design/methodology/approach
The experimental design used in this study is an adaptation of Mattila’s (2001) research design, which manipulated both the level of service recovery and relationship A total of 677 respondents were assigned randomly to one of the six experimental conditions Multi-group structural equation modeling was employed to estimate the proposed model across three relational conditions
Findings
This study suggests that the buffering effects are directly triggered by the impact of relationships, whereas, the magnifying effects are primarily related to the customer’s cognitive processes This study reveals multiple forms of concurrent buffering and magnifying effects in service failures
Originality/value
The findings of the study led to a classification system of the various forms of buffering and magnifying effects of relationships in the event of service failures The four active roles of relationships are identified as damage control, benefit catalyst, benefit attenuator and damage catalyst This proposed typology breaks new ground for theorizing about relationship utilization in negative incidents
12 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, both partners of close relationships dyads (including 164 complete couples) were surveyed over three time-points following the report of a wrongdoing by one of the partners, and Latent growth modeling showed that victims' forgiveness was associated with growth in their perception of a value consensus with the offender.
Abstract: Most psychological research has investigated victims' forgiveness and offenders' self-forgiveness separately, ignoring interactive and dynamic processes between them. We suggest that both parties are interdependent in their attempts to revalidate the values violated by the wrongdoing. In the present study, both partners of close relationships dyads (including 164 complete couples) were surveyed over three time-points following the report of a wrongdoing by one of the partners. Latent growth modeling showed that victims' forgiveness was associated with growth in their perception of a value consensus with the offender. Victims' value consensus perception was associated with growth in offenders' perception of value consensus and engagement in genuine self-forgiveness (working through). However, directly, forgiveness was associated with decline in offenders' genuine self-forgiveness, while offenders' self-punitiveness was associated with decline in victims' forgiveness. The findings highlight the regulatory function of victim forgiveness and the pivotal role of restoring value consensus in interactive moral repair.
12 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the internal conflict model is used to provide a simple explanation for the experience of both positive and negative arousal, coping strategies, the concept of forgiveness, and ego-transcendence among others.
Abstract: In the past, many psychological theories have been introduced in an attempt to explain the relationship between anxiety and internal conflict (e.g., Adler, 1954; Fairbairn, 1974; Freud, 1966; Guntrip, 1964; Rogers, 1959). Although each of them is unique in its own way, there seems to be a basic underlying commonality that runs through the vast number of these theories. This article is focused on introducing a theoretical framework representing this underlying commonality. It is referred to as the "internal conflict model," and is designed to understand many of our emotional experiences in relation to internal conflict. In this article, the internal conflict model is used to provide a simple explanation for the experience of both positive and negative arousal, coping strategies, the concept of forgiveness, and the concept of ego-transcendence among many others.
11 citations
References
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TL;DR: Two 10-item mood scales that comprise the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) are developed and are shown to be highly internally consistent, largely uncorrelated, and stable at appropriate levels over a 2-month time period.
Abstract: In recent studies of the structure of affect, positive and negative affect have consistently emerged as two dominant and relatively independent dimensions. A number of mood scales have been created to measure these factors; however, many existing measures are inadequate, showing low reliability or poor convergent or discriminant validity. To fill the need for reliable and valid Positive Affect and Negative Affect scales that are also brief and easy to administer, we developed two 10-item mood scales that comprise the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). The scales are shown to be highly internally consistent, largely uncorrelated, and stable at appropriate levels over a 2-month time period. Normative data and factorial and external evidence of convergent and discriminant validity for the scales are also presented.
34,482 citations
TL;DR: A new coefficient is proposed to summarize the relative reduction in the noncentrality parameters of two nested models and two estimators of the coefficient yield new normed (CFI) and nonnormed (FI) fit indexes.
Abstract: Normed and nonnormed fit indexes are frequently used as adjuncts to chi-square statistics for evaluating the fit of a structural model A drawback of existing indexes is that they estimate no known population parameters A new coefficient is proposed to summarize the relative reduction in the noncentrality parameters of two nested models Two estimators of the coefficient yield new normed (CFI) and nonnormed (FI) fit indexes CFI avoids the underestimation of fit often noted in small samples for Bentler and Bonett's (1980) normed fit index (NFI) FI is a linear function of Bentler and Bonett's non-normed fit index (NNFI) that avoids the extreme underestimation and overestimation often found in NNFI Asymptotically, CFI, FI, NFI, and a new index developed by Bollen are equivalent measures of comparative fit, whereas NNFI measures relative fit by comparing noncentrality per degree of freedom All of the indexes are generalized to permit use of Wald and Lagrange multiplier statistics An example illustrates the behavior of these indexes under conditions of correct specification and misspecification The new fit indexes perform very well at all sample sizes
21,588 citations
Book•
01 Jan 1958TL;DR: The psychology of interpersonal relations as mentioned in this paper, The psychology in interpersonal relations, The Psychology of interpersonal relationships, کتابخانه دیجیتال و فن اطلاعات دانشگاه امام صادق(ع)
Abstract: The psychology of interpersonal relations , The psychology of interpersonal relations , کتابخانه دیجیتال و فن آوری اطلاعات دانشگاه امام صادق(ع)
15,254 citations
Additional excerpts
...Social psychologists have also addressed interpersonal forgiving from time to time (Darby & Schlenker, 1982; Gahagan & Tedeschi, 1968; Heider, 1958; Horai, Lindskold, Gahagan, & Tedeschi, 1969; Weiner, Graham, Peter, & Zmuidinas, 1991)....
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TL;DR: A scale of current subjective distress, related to a specific event, was based on a list of items composed of commonly reported experiences of intrusion and avoidance, and responses indicated that the scale had a useful degree of significance and homogeneity.
Abstract: Clinical, field, and experimental studies of response to potentially stressful life events give concordant findings: there is a general human tendency to undergo episodes of intrusive thinking and periods of avoidance. A scale of current subjective distress, related to a specific event, was based on a list of items composed of commonly reported experiences of intrusion and avoidance. Responses of 66 persons admitted to an outpatient clinic for the treatment of stress response syndromes indicated that the scale had a useful degree of significance and homogeneity. Empirical clusters supported the concept of subscores for intrusions and avoidance responses.
7,692 citations
TL;DR: The Dyadic Adjustment Scale as discussed by the authors is a measure for assessing the quality of marriage and other similar dyads, which is designed for use with either married or unmarried cohabiting couples.
Abstract: This study reports on the development of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, a new measure for assessing the quality of marriage and other similar dyads. The 32-item scale is designed for use with either married or unmarried cohabiting couples. Despite widespread criticisms of the concept of adjustment, the study proceeds from the pragmatic position that a new measure, which is theoretically grounded, relevant, valid, and highly reliable, is necessary since marital and dyadic adjustment continue to be researched. This factor analytic study tests a conceptual definition set forth in eariler work and suggests the existence of four empirically verified components of dyadic adjustment which can be used as subscales [dyadic satisfaction, dyadic cohesion, dyadic consensus and affectional expression]. Evidence is presented suggesting content, criterion-related, and construct validity. High scale reliability is reported. The possibility of item weighting is considered and endorsed as a potential measurement technique, but it not adopted for the present Dyadic Adjustment Scale. It is concluded that the Dyadic Adjustment Scale represents a significant improvement over other measures of marital adjustment, but a number of troublesome methodological issues remain for future research.
6,899 citations