Forgiveness

== In relationships ==
[[File:Marriage Forgiveness.jpg|thumb|Forgiveness in marriage]]
Forgiveness in marriage is important.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} When two people can forgive each other this contributes to a [[Happiness|happy]] marriage. Forgiveness can help prevent problems from growing.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006">{{cite journal|last1=Fincham|first1=F.|last2=Hall|first2=J.|last3=Beach|first3=S.|year=2006|volume=55|number=4|title=Forgiveness In Marriage: Current Status And Future Directions|journal=Family Relations|pages=415–427|doi=10.1111/j.1741-3729.2005.callf.x-i1}}</ref>

In a 2005 study, researchers investigated whether forgiveness is important in a marriage. When does forgiveness usually accrue—before an argument or after an argument? Does forgiveness take a role when a person breaks a promise? etc.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" /> Researchers found six components that were related to forgiveness in marriage: satisfaction, ambivalence, conflict, attributions, empathy, and commitment.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" />

People in a relationship believe that forgiveness means you must forget what had happened.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" /> When couples forgive their spouses they sometimes need help from professionals to overcome their pain that might remain.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" /> Researchers described differences between how each individual perceives the situation based on who is in pain and who caused the pain.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" />

The act and effects of forgiveness can vary depending on the relationship status between people. Whether you are married, friends, or acquaintances, the process of forgiving is similar but not completely the same.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Fow |first1=Neil Robert |title=The Phenomenology of Forgiveness and Reconciliation |journal=Journal of Phenomenological Psychology |date=1996 |volume=27 |issue=2 |pages=219–233 |doi=10.1163/156916296X00113 }}</ref>

===The model of forgiveness===

"Enright's model of forgiveness has received empirical support and sees forgiveness as a journey through four phases":<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" />

; Uncovering phase: Emphases exploring the pain that the person has experienced.
; Decision phase: The nature of forgiveness is discussed. The person commits that they will try to forgive the transgressor.
; Work phase: The focus shifts to the transgressor in an effort to gain insight and understanding.
; Deepening phase: The victim moves toward resolution, becoming aware that he/she is not alone, having been the recipient of others' forgiveness, and finds meaning and purpose in the forgiveness process.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" />

When married couples argue they tend to focus on who is right and who is wrong.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" />

===Recommendation and interventions===

The researchers also came up with recommendations for practitioners and interventions to help married individuals communicate with each other, to resolve problems, and to forgive each other more easily.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" /> For example, people should explore and understand what forgiveness means before starting any intervention because preconceived ideas of forgiveness can cause problems with couples being open to forgive.<ref name="Fincham Hall Beach 2006" /> For example, a person not forgiving their spouse out of fear that the spouse might think that they are weak can cause a conflict.

In 2001, Charlotte van Oyen Witvliet asked people to think about someone who had hurt, wronged, or offended them. As they thought to answer, she observed their reaction. She observed their blood pressure, heart rate, facial muscle tension, and sweat gland activity. Recalling the grudge increased the candidates’ blood pressure and heart rate, and they sweated more. The rumination was stressful, and unpleasant. When they adopted forgiveness, they showed no more of an anxiety reaction than normal wakefulness produces.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Granting Forgiveness or Harboring Grudges: Implications for Emotion, Physiology, and Health |journal=Psychological Science |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=117–123 |date=2001-03-01 |doi=10.1111/1467-9280.00320 |pmid=11340919 |last1=Witvliet |first1=Charlotte van Oyen |last2=Ludwig |first2=Thomas E. |last3=Laan |first3=Kelly L. Vander |s2cid=473643 |url=https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2300&context=faculty_publications }}</ref>