title: Assessing the relationships among race, religion, humility, and self-forgiveness: A longitudinal investigation.
abstract: Social and behavioral scientists have shown a growing interest in the study of virtues due, in part, to the influence of positive psychology. The underlying premise in this research is that adopting key virtues promotes a better quality of life. Consistent with this orientation, the purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between humility and self-forgiveness over time. The analyses are organized around three issues. First, it is proposed that older Blacks will be more humble than older Whites and older Blacks will be more likely to forgive themselves than older Whites. Second, it is hypothesized that, over time, more humble older people are more likely to forgive themselves than individuals who are less humble. Third, it is proposed that greater involvement in religion is associated with greater humility and greater self-forgiveness. Data from a nationwide longitudinal survey of older adults provides support for all these hypotheses.
authors.affiliation: University of Michigan, School of Public Health, 1415 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, United States. Electronic address: nkrause@umich.edu.
authors.forename: Neal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Krause
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D044383:Black People; D005260:Female; D061347:Forgiveness; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012067:Religion; D012649:Self Concept; D044465:White People
keywords: Aging; Humility; Religion; Self-forgiveness