Does Religiosity Inhibit the Proclivity to Self-Forgive?
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Running head: RELIGIOSITY AND SELF-FORGIVENESS 1 1 Does religiosity inhibit the proclivity to self-forgive? 1 1 2 Catherine Palmer & James E Bartlett 1 3 School of Psychology and Social Science, Arden University, UK. 4 Author Note 5 ORCID ID (JEB): 0000-0002-4191-5245. This study was originally designed and 6 written for a dissertation (https://thesiscommons.org/4jmx3/). 7 Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to James E Bartlett, Arden 8 University, Arden House, Coventry, UK. E-mail: [email protected] RELIGIOSITY AND SELF-FORGIVENESS 2 9 Abstract 10 This mixed methods study explored factors associated with self-forgiveness as previous 11 research predominantly focused on the forgiveness of others from a quantitative perspective. 12 A convenience sample of 102 participants (35 males, 67 females; 72% Christian) was 13 recruited using a combination of advertisements within religious buildings and social media 14 appeals. Participants responded to self-report scales comprising the Heartland Forgiveness 15 Scale, Religious Commitment Inventory, Divine Forgiveness Scale, and the Perceptions of 16 Forgiveness Scale. Additionally, participants completed four further open questions 17 pertaining to their own implicit, experiential interpretations of forgiveness. We used multiple 18 linear regression for quantitative data and thematic analysis for qualitative data. The results 19 of the regression analysis found that the model accounted for 46.5% of the variance in 20 self-forgiveness. Each predictor variable was statistically significant where divine forgiveness 21 was a positive predictor of self-forgiveness, while religious commitment and perceived 22 transgressions were negative predictors. Thematic analysis identified three themes: cognitive 23 dissonance; which identified inconsistencies between self-identity and one’s behaviour; 24 conciliatory behaviour; which explored actions taken to earn forgiveness, and God image; as 25 either compassionate or punitive. The findings suggest that subjective interpretations of 26 religion may have an inhibiting role on an individuals’ propensity to self-forgive. 27 Self-forgiveness appears dependent upon other inhibiting factors including God image, 28 adherence to doctrines of implicitly held virtues, and one’s understanding of what it means 29 to forgive. 30 Keywords: Self-Forgiveness, Divine Forgiveness, Religion, Multiple Regression, 31 Thematic Analysis 32 Word count: 5440 RELIGIOSITY AND SELF-FORGIVENESS 3 33 Does religiosity inhibit the proclivity to self-forgive? 34 Psychological studies have explored individual, relational, and situational correlates of 35 forgiveness together with psychopathological, neurological, and physiological health 36 outcomes (Witvliet & McCullough, 2007). Despite this, the phenomenon does not have a 37 universal definition. Hall and Fincham (2008) describe an inflective process involving 38 increased self-esteem, decreased negative ideation towards the offence, and empathy towards 39 the offender. As one forgives, the motivation towards the transgressor reflects a positive and 40 benevolent change with decreased symptomology of anger and avoidance (Park et al., 2004). 41 Furthermore, Lawler-Row et al. (2006) observe divergent definitions between age 42 demographics of individuals with older adults using emotional terminology including the 43 letting go of negative emotions towards an offender, and young adults referring to 44 behavioural aspects of forgiveness including acceptance and restoration of the earlier 45 equilibrium. 46 Researchers have tried to understand forgiveness within the dichotomy of dispositional 47 factors; where trait forgiveness involves the inclination to forgive a transgression over 48 differing lengths of time and situational factors, and state forgiveness explores the emotive 49 process experienced at the time (Allemand et al., 2007). Consequently, research has found 50 that trait forgiveness has greater negative mental health implications than state forgiveness, 51 since it avoids the need for emotional regulation (Davis et al., 2015). 52 Self-Forgiveness. Self-forgiveness is the lesser studied phenomenon of the 53 forgiveness tripartite (along with the forgiveness of others and divine forgiveness) which may 54 result from its subjective and abstract nature (Ross et al., 2007). Hall and Fincham (2008) 55 assert that a key difference between interpersonal and self-forgiveness is that reconciliation is 56 a necessary precursor to self-forgiveness, yet unnecessary interpersonally. This condition of 57 reconciliation within the individual describes a process where transgressors choose to RELIGIOSITY AND SELF-FORGIVENESS 4 58 acknowledge their own culpability for wrongdoings while retaining personal worth (Vitz & 59 Meade, 2011). This is based on the inherent ability to learn from one’s mistake and the 60 motivational shift from self-condemnation and avoidance of offence-related stimuli is 61 decreased in favour of self-benevolence (Hall & Fincham, 2008). 62 Models of self-forgiveness reliant upon personal reconciliation may unnecessarily be 63 divided into implicitly felt senses of “good” and “bad” (Vitz & Meade, 2011). Strelan and 64 Zdaniuk (2015) state that reparation of moral self-representation in conjunction with 65 experienced negative emotion can be a mediator for prosocial behaviour. In order to negate 66 dissonance between one’s ideal and real self, the pursuit of self-forgiveness may require an 67 individual to uphold both social and moral obligations while maintaining conditions of worth 68 (Exline et al., 2012). 69 As such, self-forgiveness is more strongly implicated in psychological well-being than 70 other types of forgiveness (Davis et al., 2015). Unforgiveness has explicitly been linked to ill 71 health (Worthington Jr. et al., 2001) with studies identifying pathologies of high blood 72 pressure and heart rate (Lawler et al., 2005); reduced hippocampal volume (associated with 73 chronic stress and anger); reduced activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex; and 74 increased limbic activity connected with human emotional regulation (Chester et al., 2017). 75 Due to the negative health implications associated with unforgiveness, it is important to 76 explore what factors are associated with self-forgiveness. Potential factors include 77 perceptions of transgressions, religious commitment, and divine forgiveness. 78 Perceived severity of transgressions. Internalised perceptions of transgressions 79 have been found to influence the ability for self-forgiveness. Offence severity is positively 80 correlated with shame and guilt (Exline et al., 2012) and increased offence severity correlates 81 negatively with one’s belief of being worthy for forgiveness (Wohl & McGrath, 2007). 82 However, an important correlate of this may rely upon the extent to which a transgressor’s 83 offence contravenes their own personal, moral, or religious principles (Hall & Fincham, 2005). RELIGIOSITY AND SELF-FORGIVENESS 5 84 The disproportionate allocation of responsibility may allude to poor self-esteem (Yao et al., 85 2017), social intergroup belonging (Effron & Knowles, 2015), and religious obligation which 86 may be maladaptive if it fuels persistent self-critical thought processes and self-punitive 87 behaviour (Davis et al., 2013). 88 Religious commitment. The association between forgiveness and religiosity has 89 been well established since forgiveness itself is strongly rooted in theology (Escher, 2013). 90 The role of religion is now cited in the The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental 91 Disorders (DSM-5) for issues surrounding faith as possible compounding factors of 92 stress-related illness (Griffin et al., 2015). 93 Correlational studies have found that individuals who are more forgiving are more 94 religious (Lawler-Row et al., 2006), yet this might refer to religiosity rather than affiliation as 95 a predictor of attitudinal and projective forgiveness (Fox & Thomas, 2008). Religious 96 individuals may not necessarily be more forgiving than their nonreligious counterparts in 97 real-life situations (Kidwell et al., 2012). Furthermore, although religious commitment may 98 influence forgiveness of others, it does not necessarily promote the proclivity for 99 self-forgiveness (Walker et al., 2011). These contradicting findings suggest that other factors 100 must also contribute to forgiving behaviours. 101 Divine forgiveness. Studies investigating the relationship between religion and 102 forgiveness predominantly use Christian and monotheistic populations. These religions are 103 known to promote acts of compassion toward one’s transgressor in which the victim 104 voluntarily relinquishes their right to a retaliatory response which might threaten the 105 reconciliation of the relationship (Armour & Umbreit, 2006). In Christianity, The Bible cites 106 over 80 passages promoting divine and interpersonal forgiveness with an ideation of forgiving 107 one another just as God forgives (Matthew, 6: 14-15). Yet, it appears that a “God image” is 108 an important predictor of individual interpretation of scripture since this same passage may 109 also be understood from a transactional perspective; “If you do not forgive men their sins, RELIGIOSITY AND SELF-FORGIVENESS 6 110 your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15). There exists a possibility of 111 pseudo-forgiveness whereby the extension of one’s forgiveness is considered obligatory, 112 without sincerity. The same obligation does not exist for self-forgiveness,