ERIC Number: ED273893
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1986-Feb
Pages: 59
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
A Model of Forgiveness: Theory Formulations and Research Implications.
Johnson, Karen Alexandria
A literature review revealed little empirical research on forgiveness, suggesting the need for a model of forgiveness. The work of both E. M. Pattison and L. B. Smedes was used as a foundation upon which a model was developed involving a four-stage decision making process. The four stages of forgiveness are awareness, change, interaction, and reconciliation. Movement through the stages is made by four consecutive decisions and can be viewed from either the victim's or the offender's perspective. The four decisions relate to judgment, vulnerability, intimacy, and trust-building. The first stage of awareness requires a decision of judgment about the violation that occurred. In the second stage, the person who is aware of the violation and its effects on the relationship decides whether to take steps to change the relationship. If the decision is made to undo negative effects, the person can move on to stage three where internal processes become dyadic processes. The decision to be intimate is the basis of this interaction stage. After all three decisions have been made constructively for forgiveness, the decision of trust-building can be made and the fourth stage, reconciliation, can occur. If, at stage two, a decision is made not to acknowledge or deal with the violation, a course of false forgiveness is taken, involving the four stages of denial, superficial acceptance, continued hurt, and deterioration of the relationship. Future research on forgiveness should strive to: (1) develop a general definition of forgiveness; (2) explore the developmental aspects of forgiveness, correlations between the failure to forgive and psychopathology, and the role of forgiveness in therapy; and (3) examine the Christian viewpoint of forgiveness. A five-page reference list concludes the document. (NB)
Publication Type: Information Analyses
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A