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Original Article

Exploring the Contributions of Grit and Personality in the Prediction of Self- and Other-Forgiveness

Published Online:August 31, 2017https://doi.org/10.1027/1614-0001/a000236

Abstract

Abstract. The current study explored a series of proposed antecedent predictors of forgiveness. Grit, or an individual’s level of persistence toward long-term goals, was investigated along with personality as predictors of self- and other-forgiveness. A sample of 218 college students from the Midwestern United States completed three questionnaires and a demographics sheet. Consistent with theoretical predictions, correlations among grit, self-forgiveness, and the willingness to forgive others were all positive, as were correlations among a select set of personality factors and both forgiveness orientations. With regard to predictive relationships, grit was the only significant predictor of both self- and other-forgiveness. Among personality factors, neuroticism served as a significant, negative predictor of self-forgiveness while agreeableness was found to predict other-forgiveness. Discussion and implications of the findings are discussed.

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