Measuring individual differences in the tendency to forgive: Construct validity and links with depression

Brown, Ryan P.

doi:10.1177/0146167203029006008

Cited by 505Forgiveness and Related BehaviorsEmotions and Moral BehaviorSocial and Intergroup Psychology

Measuring individual differences in the tendency to forgive: Construct validity and links with depression

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Brown, Ryan P.·2003·Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

DOI 10.1177/0146167203029006008

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Abstract

Four studies examine the construct validity of the Tendency to Forgive Scale (TTF), a brief measure of dispositional forgiveness. Study 1 showed that romantic partners' ratings of targets converged with targets' self-ratings, and Study 2 demonstrated that higher scores on the TTF were associated with lower offense accessibility. Study 3 examined the TTF's relation to self-reported depression symptoms, both independent of and interacting with attitudes toward forgiveness and dispositional vengeance. Lower TTF scores were associated with higher degrees of depression, especially for individuals with positive attitudes toward forgiveness or those low in dispositional vengeance, although neither of these latter variables displayed significant zero-order relations with depression. Finally, Study 4 examined relations between the TTF, dispositional empathy, another recent measure of dispositional forgiveness, and the dimensions of the Big Five, providing both convergent and discriminant validity evidence for the TTF.

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Forgiveness correlates with empathy.
“Several studies support a similar correlation between forgiveness and empathy (Brown, 2003; Fincham, Paleari, & Regalia, 2002; Macaskill, Maltby, & Day, 2002).”
From Gratitude and forgiveness: convergence and divergence on self-report and informant ratings. (2010) · cites this paper as Brown, 2003
Character strengths show inverse relations with depressive symptoms.
“As with anger, character strengths also show inverse relations with depressive symptoms (Brown, 2003; Watkins, Woodward, Stone, & Kolts, 2003).”
From Gratitude and forgiveness: convergence and divergence on self-report and informant ratings. (2010) · cites this paper as Brown, 2003

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Authors: Brown, R. P.
Affiliations: University of Oklahoma (US)
Corresponding author: Brown, Ryan P.
ORCID: Brown, Ryan P.
Venue: Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Published: 2003-06
Volume: 29
Issue: 6
Pages: 759-771
ISSN: 0146-1672 (ISSN-L)
1552-7433
DOI: 10.1177/0146167203029006008
OpenAlex: W2008629635
Cited by: 505
References: 44
Citations by year: 2026: 11 · 2025: 21 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 25 · 2021: 26 · 2020: 37 · 2019: 27 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 35 · 2016: 20 · 2015: 22 · 2014: 28 · 2013: 28 · 2012: 20
FWCI: 11.12
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: green
hdl.handle.net
Licence: journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations: Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
SHAREOK (University of Oklahoma; Oklahoma State University; Central Oklahoma University) (submittedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Forgiveness and Related Behaviors
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
Keywords: dispositional forgiveness, construct validity, depression, empathy, Big Five personality traits, romantic partners, convergent and discriminant validity
MeSH terms: Adult, Courtship, Depression, Emotions, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Predictive Value of Tests, Psychological Tests, Regression Analysis, United States, Reproducibility of Results

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Measuring individual differences in the tendency to forgive: Construct validity and links with depression

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