The Treatment of Forgiveness in Counselling and Therapy (original) (raw)
Related papers
Five points on the construct of forgiveness within psychotherapy
Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training, 1991
We address five issues about interpersonal forgiveness in psychotherapy, as a response to Worthington and DiBlasio's (1990) thought-provoking article. We argue that therapists must first know the subtleties in the definition of forgiveness, view forgiveness as an unfolding process taking time, direct clients to forgive one issue at a time, be aware of pseudo-forgiveness, and consider whether a client should forgive even when an offender remains unrepentant. Worthington and DiBlasio (1990), in a recent issue of this journal, discussed the important topic of interpersonal forgiveness within psychotherapy. Because of the many new articles on this topic within the helping professions (see, for example, Fitzgibbons, 1986; Hope, 1987) we believe it necessary to clarify five points about forgiveness that have emerged in the published literature. Our point is not to criticize but to add understanding about forgiveness so that therapists may provide the best possible service to clients who have forgiveness as a goal.
Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 2007
This article is a critical review of how forgiveness is conceptualized in the family therapy, counseling, and clinical psychology literature. A systematic analysis of themes in a fairly comprehensive set of texts was carried out. Three main dimensions emerged along which therapist authors' viewpoints can be located: essentiality, intentionality, and benevolence. Therapy practices and values that correspond with positions along these dimensions are presented. The analysis reveals that greater exploration is needed regarding how forgiveness is related to diversity (e.g., gender, culture, religion, etc.), marginalization, and relations of power. Our objective is to provide a conceptual map for clinicians so that they might locate their own thinking about forgiveness and be better equipped to work sensitively with the forgiveness views and values of their clients.
FORGIVENESS AND PSYCHOTHERAPY: THE PREPERSONAL, THE PERSONAL, AND THE TRANSPERSONAL
Forgiveness involves a sense of felt unity with one who has hurt us. From the point of view of development, a sense of unity can be regressive or progressive. It is argued that healthy forgiveness is transpersonal. Healthy and unhealthy forms of forgiveness can be understood by examining the prepersonal, personal, and transpersonal motivations for forgiveness. The central paradox in forgiving is defined as the other needing to be recognized as a different person before there can be a healthy sense of unity. The effects of trauma on the forgiveness process are discussed, as is the role of anger. The ''many shores'' within psychotherapy for getting to healthy (transpersonal) forgiveness are described.
Forgiveness Therapy: The Context and Conflict
Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology, 2005
This paper is a critique of forgiveness therapy that focuses on the cultural contexts in which forgiveness therapy arose, with a special focus on the movement to address the victimization of women. I describe forgiveness as
Counseling Within the Forgiveness Triad: On Forgiving, Receiving Forgiveness, and Self-Forgiveness
Counseling and Values, 1996
The concept of the forgiveness triad-forgiving others, receiving forgiveness from others, and selfforgiveness-is introduced and discussed. Each aspect is defined, presented as philosophically rational and therefore appropriate within counseling, and described within a psychological framework of how people go about that aspect of forgiveness. The interactions of the triad aredescribed, showing how the counseling process that employs forgiveness strategies may become quite complicated. A counselor's awareness of all 3 aspects of forgiveness may lead to greater clarity in the therapeutic encounter. Implications for the helping professions andfor moral development of the client arediscussed. The concept of forgiveness in the helping professions and in popular literature is growing rapidly. Although the vast majority of the works center on forgiving, some are now exploring the related areas of receiving forgiveness and self-forgiveness. As an example, in a recent magazine article (Vachss, 1994)/ a writer who focused on victims of emotional abuse made three challenging points. First, a victim need not forgive. Second, an offender must earn forgiveness by deeds toward the victim. Third, healing in this context centers only on self-forgiveness. Self-forgiveness, the author stated, is equivalent to self-reference, in which one no longer listens to the abuser's insults (such as "You're crazy."), Although it is not our intent here to debate the healing power of self-reference thinking, we examine the three aspects of forgiveness contained in that article: forgiving, receiving forgiveness, and self-forgiveness. Each has important implications within the helping professions. Together they form what we call the "forgiveness triad." In our opinion, the terms forgive and self-forgiveness are little understood and are thus easily distorted. A counselor reading about such issues may bring such distortion to the therapeutic encounter if there is no thorough examination
Forgiveness: a review of the theoretical and empirical literature
Journal of Family Therapy, 1998
This paper reviews the published literature addressing forgiveness as a therapeutic issue. The review revealed four major themes. These included: diverse attempts in the literature to define forgiveness; the presentation of models of intervention; resistance among theoreticians and therapists to examine forgiveness as a therapeutic construct, and empirical evidence of forgiveness intervention applied to clinical settings. These theoretical and empirical publications are described and critiqued. An evaluation is made as to the current state of the research, and suggestions for future directions.
The Cognitive and Emotive Uses of Forgiveness
This article presents the cognitive and emotive uses of forgiveness as a psychotherapeutic technique which enables patients to release anger without inflicting harm on others. The benefits, process, and preventive uses of forgiveness in psychotherapy as well as obstacles encountered to relinquishing anger are discussed.
A Conceptual Model of Forgiveness and Mental Health: A Philosophical Appraisal
Public Health Open Access, 2024
This paper explores the nature of hate, forgiveness, and interconnectedness in human relationships. Hatred often arises from conflicts with personal expectations but can be transformed into forgiveness by adopting an impersonal, holistic perspective. Drawing on evolutionary theory, psychological insights, and Buddhist philosophy, the paper argues that forgiveness is essential for individual mental well-being and societal harmony. The Buddhist concept of "two arrows" illustrates that while pain is unavoidable, suffering stems from emotional reactions and can be mitigated. Embracing the interconnected nature of events allows individuals to transcend psychological suffering and cultivate compassion. Forgiveness, distinct from condoning or forgetting, is a profound process of healing and self-liberation with significant implications for mental and physical health. By integrating philosophical and psychological perspectives, the paper highlights forgiveness as a biological and psychological necessity, improving mental health, life satisfaction, and fostering both personal and communalistic harmony.
Forgiveness and Mental Health Intervention
SHREE PUBLISHERS & DISTRIBUTORS, New Delhi, India
Recent years have witnessed a sudden upsurge in the scientific study of positive psychological constructs to unravel a multitude of positive life outcomes for people across the globe. Forgiveness has gained a popular status due to its ubiquitous nature and significant role in human life. Conventionally, forgiveness has been assumed to be the subject matter falling in the purview of theology, religion, ethics and philosophy. It has gained the status of a popular construct having interdisciplinary orientation significant to underscore and explain a plethora of behaviours and functioning in diverse areas of human activities. In essence, forgiveness is a desirable human strength that entails a complex set of cognitive, affective and behavioural attributes suggested to play a pivotal role in renouncing resentment and promoting reconciliation. The researchers have identified that forgiveness works at four levels: intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational and collective levels. Many positive outcomes have been observed to be closely associated with the practice of forgiveness as it catalyzes socially desirable motivational changes and liberation of the individuals from negative affiliations linked with a transgression, transgressor or situations pertaining to a transgression. A set of mechanisms have been suggested to underlie forgiveness that helps to lessen resentment and negative emotionality, and to reinterpretation and reframing of the various aspects of transgressions leading to full functioning, health and well-being by people. Expression of remorse, acceptance of wrongdoing, repairing of relationship with self and others, ability to minimize negative emotions towards self, monitoring of others’ positive behaviours and acknowledgements of valued and close relationships have been suggested to be the chief psychological mechanisms underlying its positive impacts for life outcomes. This chapter attempts to highlight the role of forgiveness as a positive health intervention to achieve, strengthen, maintain and promote mental health outcomes. A special emphasis will also be to explicate the origin of forgiveness in the Vedic rituals like Puja, Prayer, Dan and Aparigraha prevalent in Indian cultural practices. The mental health interventions based on forgiveness may have an effective role in lessening negative emotionality, grief, pain and promoting positive relationships with the self, others, community and organizations. The conclusions of the chapter may have significant implications for practitioners, researchers and health professionals. Keywords: forgiveness, forgiveness intervention, life outcomes, positive mental health.