Very little has been written about why individuals often do not forgive or why their efforts to do so may not be successful. The existing literature concerning psychological concepts of forgiveness generally presumes them to be universally applicable without regard to individual differences in the forgiver's developmental maturity level, personality structure, or psychopathological state. This article expands and elaborates the author's earlier psychologically and theologically integrated model of forgiveness (Pingleton, 1989) to offer a psychodynamic understanding of how and why individuals may become pathologically resistant to or fixated in the forgiveness process. Accordingly, a paradigmatic depiction of relevant biblical principles and Object Relations developmental theory is introduced, from which diagnostic and psychotherapeutic implications for conceptualizing forgiveness failures are drawn.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AchterbergS., MatthewsS., & SimontonO. C. (1976). Psychology of the exceptional cancer patient: A description of patients who outlived predicted expectancies. Psychotherapy, 6, 13–14.
2.
AllenderD. B., & LongmanT. (1992). Bold love.Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.
3.
AngyalA. (1952). The convergence of psychotherapy and religion. Journal of Pastoral Care, 4, 4–14.
4.
AugsburgerD. (1970). Seventy times seven: The freedom of forgiveness.Chicago: Moody.
5.
AugsburgerD. (1981). Caring enough to forgive.Ventura, CA: Regal.
6.
BeckJ. R. (1995). When to forgive. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 14, 269–273.
7.
BensonC. K. (1992). Forgiveness and the psychotherapeutic process. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 76–81.
8.
BrandsmaJ. M. (1982). Forgiveness: A dynamic, theological and therapeutic analysis. Pastoral Psychology, 31, 40–50.
9.
BonarC. A. (1989). Personality theories and asking for forgiveness. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 8(1), 45–51.
10.
BonhoefferD. (1963). The cost of discipleship.New York: MacMillan.
11.
CalianC. S. (1981). Christian faith and forgiveness. Theology Today, 37, 439–443.
12.
CrabbL. (1988). Inside Out.Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.
13.
CunninghamB. B. (1985). The will to forgive: A pastoral theological view of forgiving. Journal of Pastoral Care, 39, 141–149.
14.
DavenportD. S. (1991). The functions of anger and forgiveness: Guidelines for psychotherapy with victims. Psychotherapy, 28, 140–144.
15.
DavisP. (1991). The father I never knew: Finding the perfect parent in God.Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.
16.
DiBlasioF. A. (1992). Forgiveness in psychotherapy: Comparison of older and younger therapists. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 181–187.
17.
DiBlasioF. A., & BendaB. B. (1991). Practitioners, religion and the use of forgiveness in the clinical setting. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 10, 166–172.
18.
DiBlasioF. A., & ProctorJ. H. (1993). Therapists and the clinical use of forgiveness. American Journal of Family Therapy, 21, 175–184.
19.
EnrightR. D., & ZellR. L. (1989). Problems encountered when we forgive one another. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 8(1), 52–60.
20.
FairbairnW. R. D. (1954). An object relations theory of the personality.New York: Basic.
21.
FitzgibbonsR. P. (1986). The cognitive and emotive uses of forgiveness in the treatment of anger. Psychotherapy, 23, 629–633.
22.
GartnerJ. (1988). The capacity to forgive: An object relations perspective. Journal of Religion and Health, 27, 313–320.
23.
GassinE. A., & EnrightR. D. (1995). The will to meaning in the process of forgiveness. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 14, 38–49.
24.
GladsonJ. A. (1992). Higher than the heavens: Forgiveness in the Old Testament. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 125–135.
25.
GuestJ. L. (1988). Forgiving your parents.Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity.
26.
GuntripH. (1971). Psychoanalytic theory, therapy, and the self.New York: Basic.
27.
HamiltonJ. D. (1984). The faces of God: How our images of God affect us.Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill.
28.
HargraveT. D. (1994). Families and forgiveness: Healing wounds in the intergenerational family.New York: Brunner/Mazel.
29.
HeblJ. H., & EnrightR. D. (1993). Forgiveness as a psychotherapeutic goal with elderly females. Psychotherapy, 30, 658–667.
30.
HopeD. (1987). The healing paradox of forgiveness. Psychotherapy, 24, 240–244.
31.
HornerA. J. (1984). Object relations and the developing ego in therapy.New York: Jason Aronson.
32.
JonesE. (1961). Fear, guilt, and hate: Papers on psychoanalysis.Boston: Beacon.
33.
Jones-HaldemanM. (1992). Implications from selected literary devices for a New Testament theology of grace and forgiveness. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 136–146.
34.
KaplanB. H. (1992). Social health and the forgiving heart: The Type B story. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 15, 3–14.
35.
KernbergO. F. (1980). Internal world and external reality: Object relations theory applied.New York: Aronson.
36.
LinnD., & LinnM. (1978). Healing life's hurts: Healing memories through the five stages of forgiveness.New York: Paulist.
37.
LundeenL. (1989). Forgiveness and human relationships. In AdenL., & BennerD. G. (Eds.), Counseling and the human predicament: A study of sin, guilt, and forgiveness (pp. 177–193). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
38.
MahlerM. (1975). The psychological birth of the human infant.New York: Basic.
39.
MaugerP. A., FreemanT., McBrideA. G., PerryJ. E., GroveD. C., & McKinneyK. E. (1992). The measurement of forgiveness: Preliminary research. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 170–180.
40.
McCulloughM. E., SandageS. J., & WorthingtonE. J.Jr. (1995). Charles Williams on interpersonal forgiveness: Theology and therapy. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 14, 355–364.
41.
McCulloughM. E., & WorthingtonE. L.Jr. (1994). Encouraging clients to forgive people who have hurt them: Review, critique, and research prospectus. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 22, 3–20.
42.
MinirthF., HawkinsD., MeierP., & FlourneyR. (1986). How to beat burnout.Chicago: Moody.
43.
NarramoreS. B. (1984). No condemnation.Grand Rapids, MI: Academie/Zondervan.
44.
NarramoreS. B. (1989). Psychoanalytic contributions to the Christian view of guilt. In AdenL., & BennerD. G. (Eds.), Counseling and the human predicament: A study of sin, guilt and forgiveness (pp. 117–126). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
45.
PattisonE. M. (1965). On the failure to forgive or to be forgiven. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 31, 106–115.
46.
PattisonE. M. (1989). Punitive and reconciliation models of forgiveness. In AdenL., & BennerD. G. (Eds.), Counseling and the human predicament: A study of sin, guilt and forgiveness (pp. 162–176). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
47.
PeckM. S. (1978). The road less travelled: A new psychology of love, traditional values, and spiritual growth.New York: Simon & Schuster.
48.
PingletonJ. P. (1989). The role and function of forgiveness in the psychotherapeutic process. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 17, 27–35.
49.
PingletonJ. P. (1992). A model of relational maturity. In AdenL., BennerD. G., & EllensJ. H. (Eds.), Christian perspectives in human growth and development (pp. 101–113) Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
50.
RosenakC. M., & HarndenG. M. (1992). Forgiveness in the psychotherapeutic process: Clinical applications. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 188–197.
51.
ShontzF. C., & RosenakC. (1988). Psychological theories and the need for forgiveness: Assessment and critique. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 7(1), 23–30.
52.
SimonS., & SimonS. (1990). Forgiveness: How to make peace with your past and get on with your life.New York: Warner.
53.
SmedesL. B. (1984). Forgive and forget: Healing the hurts we don't deserve.San Francisco: Harper & Row.
54.
StanleyC. (1987). Forgiveness.Nashville, TN: Oliver Nelson.
StrongJ. (1984). The new Strong's exhaustive commentary of the Bible.Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.
57.
TournierP. (1962). Guilt and grace.New York: Harper & Row.
58.
VeenstraG. (1992). Psychological concepts of forgiveness. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 160–169.
59.
VeenstraG. (1993). Forgiveness: A critique of adult child approaches. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 12, 58–68.
60.
VineW. E. (1985). An expository dictionary of biblical words.Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.
61.
WahkingH. (1992). Spiritual growth through forgiveness. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 198–206.
62.
WapnickK. (1985). Forgiveness: A spiritual psychotherapy. In StamE. M. (Ed.), Psychotherapy and the religiously committed patient (pp. 47–54). New York: Haworth.
63.
WelchR. (1973). We really do need each other.Nashville, TN: Impact.
64.
WinnicottD. W. (1965). The maturational process and the facilitating environment.New York: International Universities Press.
65.
WorthingtonE. L.Jr., & DiBlasioF. A. (1990). Promoting mutual forgiveness within the fractured relationship. Psychotherapy, 27, 219–223.
66.
ZackrisonE. (1992). A theology of sin, grace, and forgiveness. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11, 147–159.
