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Forgiveness and Health: Age Differences in a U.S. Probability Sample (2001)

Abstract

Forgiveness is a variable closely related to religiousness and spirituality that has been hypothesized to be protective of mental and physical health. However, we do not clearly understand which aspects of forgiveness are most clearly associated with health outcomes, and the conditions under which these relationships occur. This study used national probability data to systematically examine age differences in the association between forgiveness, religiousness/ spirituality, and respondent reports of mental and physical health. Results showed age differences in the levels of forgiveness of others and feeling forgiven by God. In both cases, middle and old age adults showed higher levels of these forms of forgiveness than young adults. Furthermore, the relationship between forgiveness of others and respondent reports of mental and physical health varies by age. Forgiveness of others was more strongly related to self-reported mental and physical health for middle and old age adults than for young adults.. Peer Reviewed. http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44638/1/10804_2004_Article_341950.pdf

Publication details

Download	, http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/44638
Publisher	Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers; Plenum Publishing Corporation ; Springer Science+Business Media
Contributors	Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, Department of Sociology, University of Texas, Austin, Texas, Ann Arbor
Repository	University of Michigan (United States)
Keywords	forgiveness, mental health, age differences, Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Aging, Developmental Psychology, Social Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, health, age, West European Studies, Southeast Asian and Pacific Languages and Cultures, Social Work, Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Germanic Languages and Literature, Communications, Humanities, Social Sciences
Language	English

Publications citing this publication (1)

An Analysis of the Function of Systemic Variables Within Forgiving and Unforgiving Families (2004)

Gilbert, Paul Byron

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