Robert D. Enright

Forgiveness As A Psychotherapeutic Goal With Elderly Females

A psychotherapeutic intervention with forgiveness as the goal was implemented with 24 elderly females. The clients goal was to forgive one person who had inflicted considerable psychological hurt, as judged by the client. The subjects were randomly assigned to a forgiveness condition and a control group. The forgiveness group followed a treatment model based on Enright et al. (1991). Dependent variables included two forgiveness scales, a self-esteem inventory, a psychological depression scale, and a state-trait anxiety scale. Following the eight week intervention, the experimental group showed significantly higher forgiveness profiles at posttest compared with the control group. Both groups significantly decreased from pretest to posttest on psychological depression and trait anxiety. Implications for forgiveness counseling are discussed.

Forgiveness intervention with postabortion men

An intervention designed to foster forgiveness was implemented with postabortion men. Participants were randomly assigned to either the treatment or the control (wait list) condition, which received treatment after a 12-week waiting period. Following treatment, the participants demonstrated a significant gain in forgiveness and significant reductions in anxiety, anger, and grief as compared with controls. Similar significant findings were evident among control participants after they participated in the treatment. Maintenance of psychological benefits among the 1st set of participants was demonstrated at a 3-month follow-up.

Forgiveness Education with Parentally Love‐deprived Late Adolescents

Abstract Two studies with male and female college students (n = 48 in study 1, n = 45 in study 2), who judged themselves to be parentally love‐deprived, engaged in a randomised, experimental and control group design focused on forgiving the parent(s). Study 1 was a 4‐day workshop centring on a commitment to forgive. Study 2 was a 6‐day workshop that included more of the therapeutic regimen from the Enright and the Human Development Study Group (1991) forgiveness model. Study 1 showed only modest effects. The experimental group gained more in hope and in one aspect of forgiveness relative to the control group. Study 2, a more complete programme than the first, showed more broadbased results. Relative to the control group, the experimental group was significantly lower in anxiety and higher in forgiveness, positive attitudes toward the parents, hope and self‐esteem. Implications for forgiveness education are drawn.

Forgiveness: a developmental view

Abstract The concept of interpersonal forgiveness is described first through an examination of ancient writings and contemporary philosophical and psychological discourse. Two psychological models are then described. The first concerns developmental patterns in how people think about forgiving another. The second describes how people may go about forgiving another. Implications for counseling and education are drawn.

The adolescent as forgiver

A social cognitive developmental model of forgiveness is described and tested in two studies, the second being a replication of the first. In study 1, 59 subjects in grades 4, 7, 10, college and in adulthood were given a forgiveness interview that assessed six stages of forgiveness development, Rests DIT measure of justice development, and a religiosity scale. As predicted, there were strong age trends for forgiveness and justice. Both forgiveness and justice were related but distinct constructs. The more one practiced ones faith, the higher one was in forgiveness stage. Study 2, with 60 subjects, replicated the above findings. The studies give strong evidence that peoples understanding of forgiveness develops with age. Implications for adolescent development are drawn.

The effects of forgiveness therapy on depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress for women after spousal emotional abuse

Emotionally abused women experience negative psychological outcomes long after the abusive spousal relationship has ended. This study compares forgiveness therapy (FT) with an alternative treatment (AT; anger validation, assertiveness, interpersonal skill building) for emotionally abused women who had been permanently separated for 2 or more years (M = 5.00 years, SD = 2.61; n = 10 per group). Participants, who were matched, yoked, and randomized to treatment group, met individually with the intervener. Mean intervention time was 7.95 months (SD = 2.61). The relative efficacy of FT and AT was assessed at p < .05. Participants in FT experienced significantly greater improvement than AT participants in depression, trait anxiety, posttraumatic stress symptoms, self-esteem, forgiveness, environmental mastery, and finding meaning in suffering, with gains maintained at follow-up (M = 8.35 months, SD = 1.53). FT has implications for the long-term recovery of postrelationship emotionally abused women.

Effects of Forgiveness Therapy on Anger, Mood, and Vulnerability to Substance Use Among Inpatient Substance-Dependent Clients.

Anger and related emotions have been identified as triggers in substance use. Forgiveness therapy (FT) targets anger, anxiety, and depression as foci of treatment. Fourteen patients with substance dependence from a local residential treatment facility were randomly assigned to and completed either 12 approximately twice-weekly sessions of individual FT or 12 approximately twice-weekly sessions of an alternative individual treatment based on routine drug and alcohol therapy topics. Participants who completed FT had significantly more improvement in total and trait anger, depression, total and trait anxiety, self-esteem, forgiveness, and vulnerability to drug use than did the alternative treatment group. Most benefits of FT remained significant at 4-month follow-up. These results support FT as an efficacious newly developed model for residential drug rehabilitation.

Piaget on the Moral Development of Forgiveness: Identity or Reciprocity?

In 1932 Piaget theorized that ideal reciprocity is the underlying cognitive operation that makes the understanding and appreciation of forgiveness possible. Basing our analysis on modern philosophical

Adolescent egocentrism-sociocentrism and self-consciousness

A standardized and objectively scored scale of adolescent egocentrism-sociocentrism (AES) and a self-consciousness scale were given to 44 subjects each in the sixth, eighth, tenth, and twelfth grades and college. The AES assesses three components of egocentrism including the personal fable, the imaginary audience, and general self-focuses, as well as sociocentrism and nonsocial subscales. As predicted, the personal fable and imaginary audience declined with age. The self-focus subscale showed a curvilinear relationship with age, while, again as predicted, sociocentrism increased and nonsocial focuses declined. Adolescent egocentrism, as expected, correlated positively with self-consciousness even with age controlled. Implications for the theories of egocentrism and sociocentrism in the adolescent years are discussed.

Social Role-taking: A Review of the Constructs, Measures, and Measurement Properties

Social role-taking is examined psychometrically through a review of the constructs, measures developed to represent the constructs, and the reliability and validity of the measures. The construct is described in several different ways in the literature. Most measures show adequate interrater reliabilities, but there is less evidence regarding temporal stability or internal consistency of the scales. The validation efforts have primarily been on the age-stage relationship rather than on other aspects of the construct, although a more expanded focus has begun within the last few years. The review shows that Chandler’s cognitive, Selman’s sociomoral, and Flavell’s nickel-dime tasks possess the best psychometric properties. Recommendations for improving measurement in the social role-taking area are discussed.