title: Forgiving the September 11th terrorists: associations with coping, psychological distress, and religiosity.
abstract: Two studies examined how non-interpersonal forgiveness (when there is no social relationship between the transgressor and forgiver) related to coping and involuntary responses to stress, psychological distress, and religiosity. Three to six weeks after September 11th, 2001, forgiveness had non-linear associations with other responses to the terrorist attacks. Among college students (N=488), those who were trying or had forgiven (pro-forgiveness) the terrorists reported less involuntary engagement, more primary and secondary control coping, and more meaning finding than those who were unsure about forgiveness (ambivalent) and those who did not believe the perpetrators should be forgiven (anti-forgiveness). Ambivalent students reported the most distress, even after controlling for religion. Anti-forgiveness students reported less religiosity than ambivalent and pro-forgiveness students. Most findings were consistent among middle schoolers (N=154), particularly regarding psychological distress and responses to stress. Also, forgiveness of strangers for acts against one's community functioned separately from religion.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado 80208, USA.
authors.forename: Galena Kline
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Rhoades
authors.forename: Daniel N
authors.initials: DN
authors.lastname: McIntosh
authors.forename: Martha E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Wadsworth
authors.forename: Jarl A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Ahlkvist
authors.forename: Rebecca A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Burwell
authors.forename: Gretchen R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Gudmundsen
authors.forename: Tali
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Raviv
authors.forename: Jacqueline G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Rea
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D012069:Religion and Psychology; D047851:September 11 Terrorist Attacks / Q000523:psychology*; D012919:Social Behavior; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*; D014481:United States