Unraveling the role of forgiveness in family relationships.

Testing the idea that the process of forgiveness is intrinsically different across diverse relationships, this study examined the role of forgiveness in different family relationships. In 2 laboratory sessions 1 year apart, 114 families (each including 2 parents and 1 child) completed a new measure of family forgiveness and many individual-level, relationship-level, and family-level variables that have been previously linked with forgiveness. After validating the measure of family forgiveness in cross-sectional analyses, investigators performed longitudinal analyses to examine the role of forgiveness in each family relationship over the 1-year interval. Results indicated many important positive consequences of forgiveness on individual traits, aspects of each family relationship, and general family environment. However, there were also important asymmetries in associates of forgiveness across parent-child and parent-parent relationships, demonstrating the relationship-bound nature of forgiveness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Longitudinal relations between forgiveness and conflict resolution in marriage.

Does forgiveness predict later conflict resolution in married couples? Twelve-month follow-up data on conflict resolution were collected from the couples studied by F. D. Fincham, S. R. Beach, and J. Davila (see record 2004-11293-007), who had provided earlier reports of forgiveness and conflict resolution. For wives, the positive dimension of forgiveness or benevolence predicted husbands' later reports of better conflict resolution controlling for initial levels of conflict resolution. This finding was independent of wives' marital satisfaction and the degree of hurt engendered by husbands' transgressions. For husbands, the only predictor of wives' reports of later conflict resolution was initial level of conflict resolution. The findings are discussed in terms of the direction of effect between forgiveness and conflict resolution and of the mechanisms that might link them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What it takes to forgive: When and why executive functioning facilitates forgiveness.

To establish what it takes to forgive, the present research focused on the cognitive underpinnings of the forgiveness process. We conducted four studies that examined and supported the prediction that executive functioning (a set of cognitive control processes) facilitates forgiveness. First, a correlational study revealed a positive relation between executive functioning and dispositional forgiveness (Study 1). Second, a longitudinal study demonstrated that executive functioning predicts the development of forgiveness over a period of 5 weeks after the offense (Study 2). Finally, two experiments examined when and why executive functioning facilitates forgiveness. Specifically, and in line with predictions, Studies 3 and 4 showed that executive functioning facilitates forgiveness only in the case of relatively severe (as compared with mild) offenses. Furthermore, Study 4 provided evidence for a psychological mechanism underlying the relation between executive functioning and forgiveness by demonstrating the mediating role of rumination about the offense. Implications of these findings for the literature on forgiveness and the role of executive functioning in interpersonal relationships more generally are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of aggressive personality and family relationships in explaining family conflict.

This study investigated whether genetic and environmental influences on global family conflict are explained by parents' personality, marital quality, and negative parenting. The sample comprised 876 same-sex pairs of twins, their spouses, and one adolescent child per twin from the Twin and Offspring Study in Sweden. Genetic influences on aggressive personality were correlated with genetic influences on global family conflict. Nonshared environmental influences on marital quality and negative parenting were correlated with nonshared environmental influences on global family conflict. Results suggest that parents' personality and unique experiences within their family relationships are important for understanding genetic and environmental influences on global conflict in the home. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The road to forgiveness: A meta-analytic synthesis of its situational and dispositional correlates.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 137(2) of Psychological Bulletin (see record 2011-03899-006). In Table 2, weighted population correlations and associated standard errors and confidence intervals are incorrectly reported. In Table 3, weighted population correlations and associated confidence intervals are incorrectly reported, as well as the Q statistic for trait forgiveness. Corrected data are presented. The authors note that substantive interpretations of the results are not affected by the corrections. The median absolute value correction for the weighted population correlations in both tables is r = .01.] Forgiveness has received widespread attention among psychologists from social, personality, clinical, developmental, and organizational perspectives alike. Despite great progress, the forgiveness literature has witnessed few attempts at empirical integration. Toward this end, we meta-analyze results from 175 studies and 26,006 participants to examine the correlates of interpersonal forgiveness (i.e., forgiveness of a single offender by a single victim). A tripartite forgiveness typology is proposed, encompassing victims' (a) cognitions, (b) affect, and (c) constraints following offense, with each consisting of situational and dispositional components. We tested hypotheses with respect to 22 distinct constructs, as correlates of forgiveness, that have been measured across different fields within psychology. We also evaluated key sample and study characteristics, including gender, age, time, and methodology as main effects and moderators. Results highlight the multifaceted nature of forgiveness. Variables with particularly notable effects include intent (r? = ?.49), state empathy (r? = .51), apology (r? = .42), and state anger (r? = ?.41). Consistent with previous theory, situational constructs are shown to account for greater variance in forgiveness than victim dispositions, although within-category differences are considerable. Sample and study characteristics yielded negligible effects on forgiveness, despite previous theorizing to the contrary: The effect of gender was nonsignificant (r? = .01), and the effect of age was negligible (r? = .06). Preliminary evidence suggests that methodology may exhibit some moderating effects. Scenario methodologies led to enhanced effects for cognitions; recall methodologies led to enhanced effects for affect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Forgiveness and Conflict Resolution in Marriage.

Two studies examined whether forgiveness in married couples is associated with better conflict resolution. Study 1 examined couples in their 3rd year of marriage and identified 2 forgiveness dimensions (retaliation and benevolence). Husbands' retaliatory motivation was a significant predictor of poorer wife-reported conflict resolution, whereas wives' benevolence motivation predicted husbands' reports of better conflict resolution. Examining longer term marriages, Study 2 identified three forgiveness dimensions (retaliation, avoidance and benevolence). Whereas wives' benevolence again predicted better conflict resolution, husbands' avoidance predicted wives' reports of poorer conflict resolution. All findings were independent of both spouses' marital satisfaction. The findings are discussed in terms of the importance of forgiveness for marital conflict and its implications for spouse goals. Future research directions on forgiveness are outlined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Age differences in forgiveness: The role of future time perspective.

This study investigated whether the age trend in forgiveness is partly attributable to age differences in time perspective. Eighty-nine younger and 91 older adults were randomized into 3 experimental conditions: time-expanded, time-limited, and neutral. They responded to hypothetical offensive scenarios and rated the degree to which they would forgive the perpetrator. Results showed that older adults were more forgiving than younger adults, but regardless of age, those in the time-limited condition were more forgiving than those in the time-expanded or the neutral condition. An Age × Time perspective interaction showed that only in older adults did a time-expanded manipulation lead to lower forgiveness than the neutral condition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Child maltreatment history among newlywed couples: A longitudinal study of marital outcomes and mediating pathways.

Participants included 202 newlywed couples who reported retrospectively about child maltreatment experiences (sexual abuse, physical abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect) and whose marital functioning was assessed 3 times over a 2-year period. Decreased marital satisfaction at T1 was predicted by childhood physical abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect for husbands; only neglect predicted lower satisfaction for wives. Increased maltreatment of various types was also related to T1 difficulties with marital trust and partner aggression. Dyadic growth curve analyses showed that the marital difficulties reported at T1 tended to remain over the course of the study. Further, in several instances, maltreatment exerted an increasingly detrimental influence on marital functioning over time, particularly for husbands. Examination of possible mediators between maltreatment and reductions in marital satisfaction revealed pathways through decreased sexual activity, increased psychological aggression, and increased trauma symptoms reported by husbands. These findings suggest that clinicians should consider how an adult’s history of child maltreatment may contribute to current marital dysfunction. The authors also identify possible targets for intervention when working with this population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Victim and offender accounts of interpersonal conflict: Autobiographical narratives of forgiveness and unforgiveness.

Participants wrote 2 narratives that described an incident in which they angered or hurt someone (offender) or in which someone angered or hurt them (victim) and the offense was forgiven or not forgiven. Victims portrayed the offense as continuing (open), and offenders portrayed the offense as over (closed). Forgiveness narratives portrayed offenses as closed and with positive outcomes; however, for some victims, forgiveness coincided with continued anger, suggesting incomplete forgiveness. Dispositional empathy was associated with more benign interpretations of offenses, and situational empathy (e.g., for the offender) was associated with victims' forgiveness. In contrast, offenders' empathy for victims was associated with less self-forgiveness. Thus, both victim or offender role and forgiveness must be considered to understand narratives of interpersonal offenses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Working nonstandard schedules and variable shifts in low-income families: Associations with parental psychological well-being, family functioning, and child well-being.

Longitudinal data from the New Hope Project-an experimental evaluation of a work-based antipoverty program in Milwaukee, Wisconsin-was used to explore concurrent and lagged associations of nonstandard schedules and variable shifts with parental psychological well-being, regularity of family mealtimes, and child well-being among low-income families. Working a combination of variable shifts and nonstandard hours was associated concurrently with lower teacher-reported school performance and engagement and higher levels of externalizing behavior problems. Fixed nonstandard schedules were associated with lagged decreases in parent-reported school performance, whereas working variable shifts was associated with lagged increases in parent-reported school performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social support and the quality of parenting under economic pressure and workload in Finland: The role of family structure and parental gender.

This study focused on how factors outside the home affect the quality of mothering and fathering. Economic pressure and workload were evaluated along with the compensating role of social support on parenting. Information was gathered from 842 mothers and 573 fathers including 139 single-mother and 21 single-father families. The results showed that the nature of the strains, together with parental gender and family structure, influenced their effects on parenting. The results further revealed some gender- and strain-specific protective functions of social support on parenting. For example, economic pressure was related to increased punitive parenting, which was compensated by instrumental and emotional support among the mothers. Workload was related to less authoritative single fathering, which was compensated by instrumental support. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The expression of parental identifications in lesbian mothers' work and family arrangements.

This paper employs a multiple case study approach to explore the complex influences of parental identification on lesbian mothers' decisions about paid work and family life, and on their comfort with those decisions. Through four clinical research vignettes, we describe the breadth of experience observed in a sample of 13 lesbian women assembled as part of a larger study (Stuart, 2007) exploring the psychology of conflict between paid work and motherhood. A psychoanalytic theoretical perspective and research approach allow us to argue against some oversimple conceptions of lesbian motherhood advanced by other theorists and researchers. Variations in lesbian mothers' work-family arrangements cannot be explained in terms of either egalitarian relations between two maternally identified partners, or more traditional relations between one maternally identified and one paternally identified partner. Like heterosexual women, lesbians express a mixture of maternal and paternal, female and male identifications through varied arrangements of paid work and family life. However, lesbian mothers may be somewhat more reluctant than heterosexual mothers to acknowledge either current conflict around work and motherhood or its roots in personal history. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nighttime waking in children with asthma: An exploratory study of daily fluctuations in family climate.

Children with asthma are at increased risk for waking in the night, and there is the potential for the entire household to feel the effects. The authors conducted a telephone-based diary study to examine whether daily fluctuations in parent mood, parenting hassles, and family routines would distinguish nights in which waking occurred from nights in which they did not. Forty-seven families with a child with asthma were contacted 4 times a week every 3 months over a period of 1 year, resulting in 500 daily observations. Parent negative mood, perceived parenting hassles, and disruptions in bedtime routines were associated with increased odds that the child would wake in the middle of the night. Results underscore the importance of considering family climate in children's disturbed sleep. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hostility and withdrawal in marital conflict: Effects on parental emotional unavailability and inconsistent discipline.

This study examined the nature of pathways between marital hostility and withdrawal, parental disagreements about child rearing issues, and subsequent changes in parental emotional unavailability and inconsistent discipline in a sample of 225 mothers, fathers, and 6-year-old children. Results of autoregressive, structural equation models indicated that marital withdrawal and hostility were associated with increases in parental emotional unavailability over the one-year period, whereas marital hostility and withdrawal did not predict changes in parental inconsistency in discipline. Additional findings supported the role of child rearing disagreements as an intervening or mediating mechanism in links between specific types of marital conflict and parenting practices. Implications for clinicians and therapists working with maritally distressed parents and families are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Longitudinal analyses of family functioning in veterans and their partners across treatment.

Objective: This study evaluated the relations between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and poor family functioning in veterans and their partners. Method: Data were collected from Caucasian veterans with PTSD (N = 1,822) and their partners (N = 702); mean age = 53.9 years, SD = 7.36. Veterans completed the Posttraumatic Checklist Military Version (PCL-M) and, along with their partners, completed the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD-12). Assessments were conducted at intake into a treatment program at 3 months and 9 months posttreatment. Results: Structural equation models (SEMs) were developed for veterans as well as for veterans and their partners. Poor family functioning for veterans at intake predicted intrusion (β = .08), hyperarousal (β = .07), and avoidance (β = .09) at 3 months posttreatment. At 3 months posttreatment, family functioning predicted hyperarousal (β = .09) and avoidance (β = .10) at 9 months. For veterans and their partners, family functioning at intake predicted avoidance (β = .07) at 3 months, and poor family functioning at 3 months predicted intrusion (β = .09) and hyperarousal (β = .14) at 9 months. The reverse pathways, with PTSD symptoms predicting poor family functioning, were only evident with avoidance (β = .06). Conclusion: Family functioning may play a role in treatment for veterans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Examining the validity of self-report assessments of family functioning: A question of the level of analysis.

Family assessment instruments attempt to measure family functioning at a particular level of the family system: individual, dyad, or family as a whole. This article introduces the concept of level validity, that is, whether an assessment measures family functioning at the level that it was intended to measure. The authors argue that whenever higher-order factors (e.g., dyadic subsystems) are the target of a measure, these factors should explain variance that is independent of their lower-order constituents (e.g., individual-level characteristics). Previously published data targeting dyadic subsystems within the family were reanalyzed using a model that controls for lower-order effects. Dyad-level factors rarely emerged independent of individual-level factors and, when they did, they did not replicate across samples. The results suggest that level validity should be tested and reported along with other aspects of construct validity before accepting such measures as valid assessments of family functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of mothers' and fathers' adrenocortical reactivity in spillover between interparental conflict and parenting practices.

Guided by the affective spillover hypothesis, the present study examined the mediational role of parental adrenocortical reactivity to interparental conflict in explaining associations between interparental conflict and subsequent changes in mothers' and fathers' parenting practices over a 2-year period in a sample of 202 parents and their 6-year-old children. Results of autoregressive path models indicated that marital withdrawal was associated with increases in adrenocortical reactivity to conflict for mothers but not fathers. Furthermore, elevated adrenocortical reactivity in turn predicted greater psychologically controlling parenting practices and inconsistent discipline over time for mothers, but was not associated with changes in maternal warmth. Implications for clinicians and therapists working with maritally distressed parents and families are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A family process model of marital hostility, parental depressive affect, and early adolescent problem behavior: The roles of triangulation and parental warmth.

This study examined a family process model of early adolescent problem behavior in a community sample of 416 two-parent families. With family systems theory, a model was developed that suggests (a) marital hostility and parental depressive affect are conjoint familial stressors for youths, (b) youth triangulation mediates the association between marital hostility and adolescent problems, and (c) parental warmth buffers the negative effects of parental depressive affect and youth triangulation. With structural equation modeling, youth-perceived triangulation mediated the association between marital hostility and adolescent internalizing problems. Marital hostility was associated with externalizing problems. Mothers' depressive affect was associated with internalizing problems, and fathers' depressive affect was associated with internalizing and externalizing problems. Parental warmth was not a significant moderator. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family functioning processes and diabetic ketoacidosis in youths with type I diabetes.

Purpose/Objective: To examine relations between episodes of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and parental warmth, parental negativity, and lack of responsibility for diabetes-related tasks in a sample of youths with Type 1 diabetes (T1D). Research Method/Design: 100 youths with T1D and their caregivers, recruited from an inpatient diabetes unit and an outpatient diabetes clinic, participated. Participants completed disease-specific measures of family functioning (e.g., parental warmth, parent and child perceptions of negativity, family responsibility for diabetes regimen), and medical information (e.g., glycosylated hemoglobin and incidences of DKA) was obtained from medical records. Results: Results showed that higher child perceptions of parental warmth and caring related to the regimen were associated with decreased odds of experiencing a DKA episode. Child reports of higher parental negativity about the regimen were associated with increased odds of experiencing a DKA episode. Reports of who in the family was responsible for the diabetes regimen were not related to episodes of DKA. Conclusions/Implications: Findings suggested that family factors play a significant role in the occurrence or absence of DKA in children's long-term management of diabetes. Future intervention efforts should focus on warmth, caring, and negativity when children and their parents are problem solving and communicating about the diabetes regimen. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interrelations and moderators of longitudinal links between marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms among couples in established relationships.

Extending research based on newlywed couples, this study investigated longitudinal associations between marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms in a community sample of 296 couples in established relationships (M = 13.25 years, SD = 5.98) with children (M age = 11.05 years, SD = 2.31). Support was found for reciprocal relations between marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms in couples with established relationships. Further extending previous work, the study showed that relationship length and hostile marital conflict were significant moderators of these linkages. Husbands in longer term relationships were more vulnerable to depressive symptoms in the context of marital problems compared with husbands in shorter term relationships. At higher levels of marital conflict, the negative relationship between marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms was strengthened. Reflecting an unexpected finding, increased conflict buffered spouses from marital dissatisfaction in the context of depressive symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)