Attributions, Forgiveness, and Marital Outcomes

It is inevitable that couples will face partner transgressions that lead to hurt and relational distress. In Forgiveness, Attributions, and Marital Quality in U.S. and Indian Marriages, published in the Journal of Couple and Relationship Therapy, Dr. Chance Bell, along with Dr. Shanmukh Kamble (Karnatak University), and Dr. Frank Fincham (Florida State University) examined how attributions of a partner’s transgression influence each partner’s willingness to forgive and their marital outcomes using an actor-partner interdependent mediation model (APIMeM). This is one the first studies to examine such processes among Indian couples. These findings are important to those working with or interested in marital and couple relationships, because transgressions can influence a partner’s willingness to forgive, and forgiveness is one way couples can repair relationships impacted by negative attributions.

Find the full citation in our Forgiveness publications list.

Photo by