Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Self-Forgiveness And Forgiveness-Seeking In Response To Rumination: Cardiac And Emotional Responses Of Transgressors, Sérgio P. Da Silva, Charlotte Vanoyen-Witvliet, Blake Riek

Faculty Publications

Self-forgiveness and forgiveness-seeking are important and understudied aspects of forgiveness. We examined the cardiac and emotional patterns of healthy young adults (40 women, 40 men) who recalled an unresolved offense they had caused another person. Participants engaged in four imagery conditions: ruminating about the offense, being humbly repentant and engaging in self-forgiveness, seeking forgiveness from the victim and receiving forgiveness, and seeking forgiveness from the victim and being begrudged. Being repentant and begrudged forgiveness by one’s victim was associated with the same level of guilt as when ruminating, but significantly more negative emotion, less control, and less empathy than when …