The practice of forgiveness has been found to improve health outcomes because it reduces physiological responses to stress. Forgiveness can serve as a powerful, self-administered salve. If one does not forgive, it is like handing the transgressor the skeleton key to the door of one’s life. Forgiveness might not prevent the pain of the past, but it can reduce suffering in the future.
Forgiveness
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From the Wall Street Journal to experts in medicine, therapy, and positive psychology, what does forgiveness mean and how does it affect the forgiver?
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AllCourageForgivenessGratitudeHopeHumilityHumorIn-the-NewsKindnessLoveOptimismPersistenceSelf regulationStrengthsWisdom
Nelson Mandela: A Life and Legacy of Strengths
December 5, 2013 will be remembered for news of the death of the first black president of South Africa, anti-apartheid icon and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Nelson Mandela. I’m not normally drawn to writing about political leaders. But Mandela was different in every respect. His life was a life well-lived.
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Virtuous Business Practices: An Interview with Dr. Kim Cameron
There is a lot of compelling evidence across industries, continents, and sectors that positive and virtuous practices pay off. Organizations make more money, are more productive, achieve higher quality, produce higher customer satisfaction, and create higher employee engagement. Moreover, evidence suggests that these relationships are causal. When virtuous practices improve, organizational outcomes improve as well.
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Virtuous Organizations
by Amanda Horneby Amanda HorneIf virtuousness is excellence in the human soul, what comprises excellence in the soul of an organization or business?
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In their article, Beyond Positive Psychology, McNulty and Fincham give some specific examples of research on relationships where certain contexts cause apparent contradictions of Positive Psychology findings. Forgiveness, optimism, and kindness may all be harmful in certain contexts.
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AllChangeCommunicationDecision-MakingForgivenessGoalsOptimismRelationshipsStrengthsTaking Action
Does the World Need ‘Positive’ Psychology?
James McNulty and Frank Fincham challenge a key assumption of positive psychology, that certain psychological traits and processes are inherently beneficial for well-being. They say that context, so often ignored in positive psychology research, is paramount. They suggest that well-being is determined jointly by the interplay between those characteristics and qualities of a person’s social environment. They also aver that psychology is not positive or negative. Psychology is psychology.
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My mother was the victim of an armed robbery. Revisiting this trauma reminds her (in her words) “to hold them in the light.” How is my mother able not just to allay her anger and to practice forgiveness, but actually to desire the elevation of her aggressors?
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A very close family member had hurt me very badly many years ago. For my own health and happiness, I decided to completely forgive her by finding compassion for her. I forgave her – not because I felt what she did was right, I did it for me to let it go. But over the years, forgiveness offered me no relief and I began to question if forgiveness was the right thing to do in this case? This is when I started to dig deeper on the downside of forgiveness. I mean, is there any time when it does not make sense?
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AllForgivenessTaking Action
Facilitating Forgiveness: Effective Apologies for Positive Relationships
University of Maryland psychologists Ryan Fehr and Michele Gelfand have identified three components that impact the victim’s perception of an apology and therefore facilitate the process of forgiveness. According to their model, it is not enough for a transgressor to make what feels like a sincere and humble apology. In addition, the victim’s beliefs about relationship interactions need to be considered as well.
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To continue last month’s discussion of forgivness, Part 2 highlights some key points from two recent articles about workplace forgiveness. It then presents some practical tips from people who practice…
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AllForgivenessGratitudePositive Emotion
The Stuff that Dreams Are Made Of: Capitalizing On A Day with Dad
by John Yeagerby John YeagerPositive interventions such as capitalizing, savoring and expressing gratitude have the potential to intentionally and explicitly cause a favorable change in subjective well-being. Capitalization is about sharing positive events with others which may increase positive emotions and a sense of increased belongingness. The more that positive emotions are shared, the greater likelihood that they will be remembered […].