Not so innocent: Does seeing one's own capability for wrongdoing predict forgiveness?

Exline, Julie Juola; Baumeister, Roy F.; Zell, Anne L.; Kraft, Amy J.; Witvliet, Charlotte V. O.

doi:10.1037/0022-3514.94.3.495

Cited by 146Forgiveness and Related BehaviorsSocial and Intergroup PsychologyEmotions and Moral Behavior

Not so innocent: Does seeing one's own capability for wrongdoing predict forgiveness?

Exline, Julie Juola, Baumeister, Roy F., Zell, Anne L., Kraft, Amy J., Witvliet, Charlotte V. O.·2008·Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

DOI 10.1037/0022-3514.94.3.495

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Abstract

People are more forgiving toward transgressors if they see themselves as capable of committing similar offenses, as demonstrated in 7 studies. Methods included hypothetical scenarios, actual recalled offenses, individual and group processes, and correlational and experimental designs. Three factors mediated the link between personal capability and forgiveness: seeing the other's offense as less severe, greater empathic understanding, and perceiving oneself as similar to the transgressor. In terms of predicting forgiveness, it was important that people's own offenses were similar to the target offense in terms of both severity and type. The personal capability effect was independent of other established predictors of forgiveness and was more pronounced among men than women.

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People asked to purposefully look for similarities between themselves and transgressors were more likely to be forgiving than others who did not do so.
“Experimental results link self-compassion with forgiveness. That is, people asked to purposefully look for similarities between themselves and transgressors were more likely to be forgiving than others who did not do so (Exline et al., 2008).”
From Gratitude and forgiveness: convergence and divergence on self-report and informant ratings. (2010) · cites this paper as Exline et al., 2008

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Psychological Antecedents of Decision Comprehensiveness and Their Relationship to Decision Quality and Performance in Family Firms: An Upper Echelons Perspective
Carr, J. C., Vardaman, J. M., Marler, L. E., McLarty, B. D., & Blettner, D. (2020) · Family Business Review · doi:10.1177/0894486520917774 · Cited by 43 · see citing works
“Scenarios are commonly employed in research designs examining cognitions (Exline et al., 2008), and we believe this strengthens the internal validity of the study because respondents are considering an identical situation.”
Background
Practicing Imperfect Forgiveness
MacLachlan, A. (2009) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-6841-6_11 · Cited by 43 · see citing works
“Elshtain describes forgiveness as (virtuous) ‘willed forgetting’ and Julia Driver includes forgiveness among a class of virtues she calls ‘virtues of ignorance’ (Driver 2001, Elshtain 2001 ).”
Background
Self-forgiveness in Psychology and Psychotherapy: A Critique
Vitz, P., & Meade, J. (2011) · Journal of religion and health · doi:10.1007/s10943-010-9343-x · Cited by 50 · see citing works
“As Exline et al. (2008) have put it, ‘‘Unfortunately, objective and dispassionate appraisals of transgressions may be relatively rare and difficult.’’”
Background
Intrapersonal and interpersonal facilitators of forgiveness following spousal infidelity: A stress and coping perspective
Chi, P., Tang, Y., Worthington, E. L., Chan, C., Lam, D. O. B., & Lin, X. (2019) · Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1002/jclp.22825 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Four Bad Habits of Modern Psychologists
Grice, J. W., Barrett, P. T., Cota, L. D., Felix, C., Taylor, Z., Garner, S., Medellin, E., & Vest, A. J. (2017) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs7030053 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
“’s [30] study on self-reflection and vengeance which was replicated by Lin [31] as part of the Reproducibility Project.”
Method
A Systems Perspective on Forgiveness in Organizations
Bies, R. J., Barclay, L. J., Tripp, T. M., & Aquino, K. F. (2015) · Academy of Management Annals · doi:10.1080/19416520.2016.1120956 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
Situational and Communicative Predictors of Forgiveness Following a Relational Transgression
Morse, C. R., & Metts, S. (2011) · Western Journal of Communication · doi:10.1080/10570314.2011.571652 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
“When faced with a transgression, individuals are more likely to forgive if they can empathize with the offending person and=or recognize that they have also committed or could potentially commit a similar transgression (Exline et al.; Younger et al., 2004). Concerning the history of previous transgressions in the rela…”
Background
Repairing the ruptured supervisory alliance: Humility as a foundational virtue in clinical supervision
Watkins, C. E., Jr., Hook, J. N., Ramaeker, J., & Ramos, M. J. (2016) · The Clinical Supervisor · doi:10.1080/07325223.2015.1127190 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Complex Social Consequences of Self-Knowledge
Tenney, E. R., & Spellman, B. A. (2010) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/1948550610390965 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Humbling Yourself before God: Humility as a Reliable Predictor of Lower Divine Struggle
Grubbs, J. B., & Exline, J. J. (2014) · Journal of Psychology and Theology · doi:10.1177/009164711404200105 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
Awareness of Common Humanity Reduces Empathy and Heightens Expectations of Forgiveness for Temporally Distant Wrongdoing
Greenaway, K. H., Louis, W. R., & Wohl, M. J. A. (2011) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/1948550611425861 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
The health implications of apologizing after an adverse event
Allan, A., & McKillop, D. (2010) · International Journal for Quality in Health Care · doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzq001 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
“Some researchers see empathy as the key to forgiving [22, 67, 68] because empathic patients are more likely to recognize that unintended outcomes occur, that other circumstances may have contributed to the incident [69], that it is human to err and that they themselves may also have caused people harm [70].”
Background
Perceived transgressor agreeableness decreases cortisol response and increases forgiveness following recent interpersonal transgressions
Tabak, B. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2011) · Biological Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2011.05.001 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Gender Differences in Response to Experimental Forgiveness Prompts: Do Men Show Stronger Responses Than Women?
Root, B. L., & Exline, J. J. (2011) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/01973533.2011.568850 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
“These findings suggest that the gender differences reported in earlier studies (Exline et al., 2008; Exline & Zell, 2009) were indeed partly due to the general process of priming forgiveness among men.”
BackgroundResultInfluential
Do congruent apologies facilitate forgiveness?
Cowden, R. G., Worthington, E. L., Joynt, S., & Jakins, C. (2018) · South African Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1177/0081246318807800 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Examining reproducibility in psychology: A hybrid method for combining a statistically significant original study and a replication
van Aert, R. C. M., & van Assen, M. A. L. M. (2017) · Behavior Research Methods · doi:10.3758/s13428-017-0967-6 · Cited by 29 · see citing works
Humility in Servant Leadership among Christian Student Leaders: A Longitudinal Pilot Study
Krumrei-Mancuso, E. J. (2018) · Journal of Psychology and Theology · doi:10.1177/0091647118807177 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
HUBRIS OR HUMILITY: CAUTIONS SURROUNDING THE CONSTRUCT AND SELF-DEFINITION OF AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP.
Chang, G. C., & Diddams, M. (2009) · Academy of Management Proceedings · doi:10.5465/ambpp.2009.44247841 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Stepping into Perpetrators’ Shoes: How Ingroup Transgressions and Victimization Shape Support for Retributive Justice through Perspective-Taking With Perpetrators
Li, M., Leidner, B., & Fernández-Campos, S. (2019) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167219858652 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Forgiveness in response to cultural microaggressions
Schoulte, J. C., Schultz, J. M., & ALTMAIER, E. M. (2011) · Counselling Psychology Quarterly · doi:10.1080/09515070.2011.634266 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
“Exline et al. (2008) found that that the propensity of individuals to forgive an offense was predicted by their belief that they could commit a similar offense in type and severity.”
Background
Exploring the relationships among humility, negative interaction in the church, and depressed affect
KRAUSE, N. M. (2014) · Aging & Mental Health · doi:10.1080/13607863.2014.896867 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
The barriers to forgiveness scale: A measure of active and reactive reasons for withholding forgiveness
Pearce, H., Strelan, P., & Burns, N. R. (2018) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2018.06.042 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Understanding the positive effect of financial compensation on trust after norm violations: Evidence from fMRI in favor of forgiveness.
Haesevoets, T., Cremer, D. D., Hiel, A. V., & Overwalle, F. V. (2017) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/apl0000271 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
The devil in the details: Individual differences in unforgiveness and health correlates
Stackhouse, M. R. D., Ross, R. J., & Boon, S. D. (2016) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2016.02.005 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Forgive them for I have sinned: The relationship between guilt and forgiveness of others' transgressions
Jordan, J., Flynn, F. J., & Cohen, T. R. (2015) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2101 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
“We propose that it is not the salience of harm-doing in and of itself (cf. Exline et al., 2008), but rather the feelings of guilt that often accompany harm-doing, that lead to greater forgiveness.”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluential
Humility, Forgiveness, and Emerging Adult Female Romantic Relationships.
Bell, C. A., & Fincham, F. (2019) · Journal of Marital & Family Therapy · doi:10.1111/jmft.12292 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Barriers to forgiveness
Raj, M., & Wiltermuth, S. S. (2016) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/spc3.12290 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“…findings from the perspective‐taking literature that suggest that perspective‐taking is beneficial following interpersonal conflict because it induces empathy (Exline et al., 2008), transgressors should be asked to identify the many reasons why victims may perceive their actions as transgressions.”
Background
Forgiveness, perfectionism, and the role of self-compassion
Mistler, B. A. (2010) · University of Florida Digital Collections (University of Florida) · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Self-forgiveness in romantic relationships: 2. Impact on interpersonal forgiveness
Pelucchi, S., Paleari, F. G., Regalia, C., & Fincham, F. D. (2015) · Family Science · doi:10.1080/19424620.2015.1082048 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
“Relying on existing studies on forgiveness, self-compassion and human fallibility awareness (Breen, Kashdan, Lenser, & Fincham, 2010; Exline et al., 2008; Neff, 2003; Wohl et al., 2006), we went on to speculate that self-forgiving people might be more prone to recognize”
Method
Moral humility: In life and at work
Smith, I. H., & Kouchaki, M. (2018) · Research in Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.riob.2018.12.001 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Effects of a culture-adaptive forgiveness intervention for Chinese college students
Ji, M., Hui, E. K. P., Fu, H. C., Watkins, D., Tao, L., & Lo, S. K. (2016) · British Journal of Guidance and Counselling · doi:10.1080/03069885.2015.1130798 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Integrating Divine Attachment Theory and the Enneagram to Help Clients of Abuse Heal in Their Images of Self, Others, and God
Kam, C. (2018) · Pastoral Psychology · doi:10.1007/s11089-018-0817-1 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
To Excuse or Not to Excuse: Effect of Explanation Type and Provision on Reactions to a Workplace Behavioral Transgression
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Confronting the Past to Create a Better Future
Branscombe, N. R., & Cronin, T. J. (2010) · doi:10.1002/9781444328158.ch17 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
The promising but challenging case of humility as a positive psychology virtue
Hill, P. C., & Sandage, S. J. (2016) · Journal of Moral Education · doi:10.1080/03057240.2016.1174675 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Examining the Relation of Compassion and Forgiveness among Filipino Counselors
Roxas, M. M., David, A. P., & Caligner, E. C. (2014) · Asian journal of social sciences & humanities · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Personal Relationships and Communication Messages at the End of Life
Prince‐Paul, M., & Exline, J. J. (2010) · Nursing Clinics of North America · doi:10.1016/j.cnur.2010.03.008 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Does Empathy Promotion Necessarily Lead to Greater Forgiveness? An Experimental Examination
Cornish, M. A., Guyll, M., Wade, N. G., Lannin, D. G., Madon, S., & Chason, K. C. (2018) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-018-9816-8 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Mindful social inferences: Decentering decreases hostile attributions
van der Schans, K. L., Karremans, J. C., & Holland, R. W. (2019) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2657 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Gratitude: the state of art
Skrzelinska, J., & Ferreira, J. A. (2020) · British Journal of Guidance and Counselling · doi:10.1080/03069885.2020.1789553 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
“Some studies (Exline et al., 2008) show a relation between self-compassion, understood as the ability to maintain a kind and non-judgemental view of self and recognise similarities between oneself and others with forgiveness, suggesting that people who are able to see similarities between…”
Background
On Measuring Forgiveness: Implications from Smallest Space Analysis of the Forgiveness Likelihood Scale
Kumar, V. K., & Ryan, R. B. (2009) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-009-9045-2 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“A question of interest for this study was to examine if subscales formed on the basis of smallest space analysis correlated with empathy, considered to be a significant pathway to forgiveness ( Exline et al. 2008 ).”
BackgroundMethodInfluential
Homicide Survivors’ Definitions of Forgiveness: Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, and Extrapersonal Orientations
Hourigan, K. L. (2016) · Violence and Victims · doi:10.1891/0886-6708.vv-d-15-00015 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
“, 2003; Struthers, Eaton, Mendoza, Santelli, & Shirvani, 2010; Struthers, Eaton, Santelli, Uchiyama, & Shirvani, 2008; Wallace, Exline, & Baumeister, 2008; Wenzel & Okimoto, 2010; Williamson & Gonzales, 2007; Zechmeister & Romero, 2002) or using imagined or hypothetical scenarios (Eaton et al., 2006; Exline et al., 20…”
Virtue in small business in small places: Organisational factors associated with employee dishonest behaviour in the retail sector
Jaakson, K., Vadi, M., Baumane-Vītoliņa, I., & Šumilo, Ē. (2016) · Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services · doi:10.1016/j.jretconser.2016.09.017 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Christian theology and positive psychology: An exchange of gifts
Charry, E. T., & Kosits, R. D. (2016) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2016.1228010 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Uncovering the Multifaceted-Self in the Domain of Negative Traits
Cheung, W., Wildschut, T., Sedikides, C., & Pinter, B. (2014) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167213518224 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Der Vergebungsprozess als ein psychotherapeutischer Behandlungsansatz
Mavrogiorgou, P., Meister, K., & Juckel, G. (2018) · Verhaltenstherapie · doi:10.1159/000486579 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
“…– sei es, ob die Abwesenheit von negativem Affekt reicht oder ob positiver Affekt nötig ist, wie Vergeben auf andere wirkt und ob es eventuell sogar zu weiteren Verletzungen einlädt, welche Motive hinter diesem stehen, und insbesondere auch, ob es «Nicht-Vergebbares» gibt [Exline et al., 2003].”
Background
Secular Humility
Wielenberg, E. J. (2019) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190864873.003.0003 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Exploring the Role of Touch and Apologies in Forgiveness of Workplace Offenses
Marler, L. E., Cox, S. S., Simmering, M. J., Bennett, R. J., & Fuller, J. B. (2011) · Journal of managerial issues · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Forgiving the Unforgivable
Hourigan, K. L. (2018) · Humanity & Society · doi:10.1177/0160597618801049 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
“This clarification may have been overlooked in previous research showing that expression of remorse through apology or repentance was a key factor in promoting forgiveness (Baumeister et al. 1998; Exline et al. 2008; Ristovski and Wertheim 2005; Santelli et al. 2009; Struthers et al. 2010; Weiner et al. 1991).”
BackgroundInfluential
Self-Compassion and Self-Forgiveness as Mediated by Rumination, Shame-Proneness, and Experiential Avoidance: Implications for Mental and Physical Health
Williams, E. C. (2015) · Digital Commons - East Tennessee State University (East Tennessee State University) · Cited by 7 · see citing works
CEO Humility and Its Relationship with Middle Manager Behaviors and Performance: Examining the CEO-Middle Manager Interface
Ou, Y. (2011) · Cited by 7 · see citing works
The Role of Victim Embarrassment in Explaining Why Apologies Affect Reported (But Not Actual) Forgiveness
Struthers, C. W., Santelli, A. G., Khoury, C., Pang, M., Young, R., Kashefi, Y., Marjanovic, Z., Phills, C. E., Nash, K. A., & Vasquez, N. A. (2014) · Journal of Language and Social Psychology · doi:10.1177/0261927x14520983 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Why and When Do Leaders Express Humility? Leader Expressed Humility as Psycho-Social Signaling
Manix, K. G. (2022) · American Business Review · doi:10.37625/abr.25.1.36-49 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
“Humility has often been found to either predict or be associated with many prosocial behaviors including helpfulness (LaBouff et al., 2012), cooperation (Hilbig & Zettler, 2009), generosity (Exline & Hill, 2012), and forgiveness (Exline et al., 2008; Powers et al., 2007; Shepherd & Belicki, 2008).”
Background
Vergeben: Eine Quelle von Wohlbefinden
Kämmerer, A. (2011) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-13760-0_18 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Vergeben: Eine Quelle von Wohlbefinden
Kämmerer, A. (2007) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-540-71622-8_17 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
When Are Apologies Effective? An Investigation of the Components that Increase an Apology's Efficacy
Hill, K. M. (2013) · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Does Major Matter? Considering the Implications of Collecting Vignette Data from Our Students.
Collett, J. L., & Childs, E. (2009) · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Can Psychological Interventions Improve Intergroup Attitudes Post Terror Attacks?
Assche, J. V., Noor, M., Dierckx, K., Saleem, M., Bouchat, P., Guissmé, L. D., Bostyn, D. H., Carew, M. T., Ernst‐Vintila, A., & Chao, M. M. (2020) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/1948550619896139 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Although these methods are consistent with the paradigm used in the literature (e.g., Čehajić-Clancy et al., 2011; Exline et al., 2008; Saleem et al., 2015), it is possible that, for example, a 1-time intervention is not sufficient given the devastating magnitude and nature of terror attacks.”
BackgroundMethodInfluential
(Not) Thinking about you: Differences in victims’ and perpetrators’ self‐focus after interpersonal and intergroup transgressions
Siem, B., & Barth, M. (2019) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2584 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Forgiveness in Relation to Attachment Style and Consanguine Marriage in Iranian Married Individuals
Shahidi, S., Zaal, B., & Mazaheri, M. A. (2012) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/02.21.pr0.110.2.489-500 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Towards a fuller understanding of the healing of childhood parental wounds: an international study of adult children’s forgiveness. ‘No matter how deep the hurt’
van der Meiden, J., Lander, A., & Simon, V. (2024) · Journal of Family Studies · doi:10.1080/13229400.2024.2332347 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“…of forgiveness involves the modi ﬁ cation of previously held attributions about the injurer through recognition of his internal frame of reference, and an understanding of the unfolding of events related to the transgression within this context (Exline et al., 2008; Macaskill et al., 2002).”
The relationship between humble leadership and team adaptation: two paths model perspective
Lin, T., Huang, C.-Y., & Chien, C. (2025) · The Learning Organization · doi:10.1108/tlo-07-2024-0201 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
BEREAVED INDIVIDUALS' FEELINGS OF ANGER TOWARD DECEASED FAMILY MEMBERS: A MIXED METHODS APPROACH
Root, B. L. (2011) · OhioLink ETD Center (Ohio Library and Information Network) · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Toward an understanding of the complexities surrounding forgiveness among men struggling with paternal attachment injury
Lander, A. (2017) · Journal of Family Studies · doi:10.1080/13229400.2017.1366351 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Effectiveness of Compassion-focused Therapy on Self-esteem, Empathy, and Forgiveness in Child Labor
Hosseinverdi, M., Pourassadi, Z., Keshavarz, S., & Kakavand, A. (2021) · Quarterly Journal of Child Mental Health · doi:10.52547/jcmh.7.4.12 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Forgiving Hurts from Religious Communities: Forgiveness of Self and Others, Anger toward God, and Psychological Adjustment after Deidentification from Ultra-Orthodox Judaism
Keller, Y., Exline, J. J., Swartz, S., & Lindquist, M. (2025) · International Journal for the Psychology of Religion · doi:10.1080/10508619.2025.2567727 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“(based on Exline et al., 2008).”
Keeping score: Past victimization reduces offenders’ conciliatory sentiments for their present transgressions
Thai, M., Wenzel, M., Quinney, B. A., Woodyatt, L., & Okimoto, T. G. (2024) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.3075 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Scrutinizing the Bachelor Level Students’ Understanding of Forgiveness
Sharma, L. R., Aryal, U., Koirala, R., Sanjel, G. P., & Upreti, U. P. (2023) · Nepal Journal of Multidisciplinary Research · doi:10.3126/njmr.v6i4.62017 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“People tend to be more forgiving if they see themselves as capable of similar offenses (Exline et al., 2008).”
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The psychological components of revenge
Kis, M., & Kovács, J. (2010) · Mentálhigiéné és Pszichoszomatika · doi:10.1556/mental.11.2010.2.3 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Exploring the Place of Forgiveness Therapy in Social Work Practice
Lander, A. (2015) · Journal of Social Work Practice · doi:10.1080/02650533.2015.1081879 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“Forgiveness therapy underscores empathy as essential to forgiveness, particularly the ability to be empathic towards a perpetrator of a specific interpersonal offense, and the active cultivation of such empathy (Exline et al. 2008).”
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Mapping the emergence of interpersonal values during transgression: Inputs to teaching Filipino psychology and values education
Rungduin, T. T., Rungduin, D., Gravidez, I. R. B., Devera, C. L., & Ronquillo, P. I. (2014) · International Journal of Research Studies in Education · doi:10.5861/ijrse.2014.937 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“Thus, the offended individual’s higher perceived similarity of transgression causes higher tendency to understand and forgive (Exline et al., 2008).”
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Mere Civility, or Genuine Forgiveness? Prosocial Consequences of Belief in Free Will
Carmody, P. C., & Gordon, K. C. (2014) · Interpersona An International Journal on Personal Relationships · doi:10.5964/ijpr.v8i2.173 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
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Impediments to forgiveness: Victim and transgressor attributions of intent and guilt.
Adams, G. S., & Inesi, M. E. (2016) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/pspi0000070 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
The relation between implicit theories of personality and forgiveness
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Personality correlates of dispositional forgiveness: a direct comparison of interpersonal and self-forgiveness using common transgression scenarios
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An insight on factors conditioning self-forgiveness process: a dyadic perspective
Pelucchi, S., Paleari, F. G., Regalia, C., & Karremans, J. C. (2014)
Offender variables: Unique predictors of Benevolence, Avoidance, and Revenge?
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Authors: Exline, J. J., Baumeister, R. F., Zell, A. L., Kraft, A. J., & Witvliet, C. V. O.
Affiliations: Case Western Reserve University (US)
Florida State University (US)
Arizona State University (US)
Hope College (US)
ORCID: Exline, Julie Juola
Baumeister, Roy F.
Witvliet, Charlotte V. O.
Venue: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Published: 2008-03
Volume: 94
Issue: 3
Pages: 495-515
ISSN: 0022-3514 (ISSN-L)
1939-1315
DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.94.3.495
OpenAlex: W2035114357
Cited by: 146
References: 74
Citations by year: 2026: 3 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 7 · 2012: 7
FWCI: 16.45
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Forgiveness and Related Behaviors
Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
Keywords: forgiveness, transgressors, perceived similarity, empathy, gender differences, self-perception, interpersonal transgressions
MeSH terms: Adolescent, Adult, Anger, Attitude, Empathy, Female, Group Processes, Guilt, Humans, Individuality, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Motivation, Mental Recall, Sex Factors, Social Behavior, Social Perception, Students

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Not so innocent: Does seeing one's own capability for wrongdoing predict forgiveness?

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