The unique effects of forgiveness on health: an exploration of pathways.

The relationship of forgiveness, both state and trait, to health was assessed. Eighty-one community adults completed a packet of questionnaires and participated in a laboratory interview about a time of hurt or betrayal. Heart rate and blood pressure were recorded during a 10 min baseline, the interview and during a recovery period; interviews were structured around a framework of questions and videotaped. Four measures of forgiveness were all statistically associated with five measures of health (physical symptoms, medications used, sleep quality, fatigue, and somatic complaints). Trait forgiveness was associated with decreased reactivity (rate-pressure product) to the interview, but sympathetic reactivity did not account for the trait forgiveness-health association. Four mechanisms or pathways by which forgiveness could lead to fewer physical symptoms were examined: spirituality, social skills, reduction in negative affect, and reduction in stress. All factors either partially or fully mediated the effect of forgiveness on health; however, the strongest mediator for both state and trait forgiveness was reduction in negative affect. For state forgiveness, the second strongest mediator was reduction in stress; for trait forgiveness, both conflict management and reduction in stress were strong contributors.

Psychometric properties of the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale.

Although the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale (RCBS; Cheek, 1983) is widely used, its psychometric properties largely are unknown. In this investigation, we examined the normative data, factor structure, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and convergent/discriminant validity of the RCBS using a sample of 261 university students. Results provided strong support for the stability of normative data over time, reliability of the measure, and its predicted associations with contemporary measures of shyness, social anxiety, and related constructs. Although support was obtained for a unifactorial conceptualization of shyness, an exploratory factor analysis revealed an alternative 3-factor solution that was supportive of a previously proposed meta-analytic model of shyness (Jones, Briggs, & Smith, 1986) and was consistent with other prominent shyness theories (Buss, 1980; Pilkonis, 1977a, 1977b; Zimbardo, 1977). This factor model was replicable on a holdout sample, and there were some data to support the discriminant validity of factors.

A change of heart: cardiovascular correlates of forgiveness in response to interpersonal conflict.

This study sought to examine the psychophysiological correlates of forgiveness in response to interpersonal conflict. One hundred eight college students (44 males and 64 females) participated in two interviews about times of interpersonal betrayal, one about a parent and one about a friend/partner. Measures of forgiving personality and state forgiveness were collected, as well as stress, hostility, empathy, and self-reported illness symptoms. During baseline, interviews and recovery periods, repeated measures were taken of blood pressure, heart rate, frontalis EMG, and skin conductance. Trait forgiveness was associated with lower levels of blood pressure. State forgiveness was associated with lower blood pressure levels, heart rate, and rate pressure product. Acute, stress-induced reactivity was also linked to forgiveness: state forgiveness was associated with diastolic and mean arterial pressure and rate pressure product reactivity during the parent interview. Increased blood pressure recovery after stress was also linked to trait forgiveness. Forgiveness may produce beneficial effects directly by reducing allostatic load associated with betrayal and conflict, and indirectly through reductions in perceived stress.

The Effect of Prior Information on Attitude Change.

An 18 month longitudinal study tested the assumption that the amount of prior political information influences the degree of ideological attitude change under conditions of exposure to counterattitudinal presentations. Male and female college students (n = 97) served as Ss, and the study was conceived as a natural experiment in which the attitudes of beginning freshmen were exposed to the questioning and challenge of college coursework. Results indicated that well and moderately informed students changed their political orientation less than poorly informed students.

Some Correlates of the Level of Constraint in a System of Social Attitudes.

Variables thought to be associated with the magnitude of interrelationship observed among the elements in a system of social attitudes were investigated. Subjects (N = 753) were asked to respond to an inventory requesting self-report and background data. Several weeks later, Ss were given two forms of the Social Attitude Scale, a scale tapping the liberalism-conservatism domain. The results indicated that those Ss who reported recent changes in religious, moral, or political attitudes displayed a more highly interconnected system of liberal-conservative attitudes than those who did not. Variables relating to active participation in social affairs tended to be associated with higher levels of attitude system organization. Sex differences were observed, with men displaying higher levels of system organization than women. This relationship held even when participation rates were taken into consideration.