Self-control and forgiveness. The mediating role of interpersonal emotion regulation

Introduction and objective: Forgiveness is a complex process that involves emotion regulation. Previous research shows that both self-control and emotion regulation are important for facilitating forgiveness. Interpersonal emotion regulation may also play a role in coping with experienced harm through forgiveness. However, prior studies have not tested whether regulation based on interpersonal, external mechanisms is relevant to forgiveness. The research presented here aims to fill this gap. Materials and methods: A group of 349 adults (287 female, 59 male, 3 other gender) were studied. The average age of the respondents was 30.4 years (SD = 11.8). Respondents completed four questionnaires: the Brief Self-Control Scale, the Interpersonal Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, the Decision to Forgive Scale, and the Emotional Forgiveness Scale. Results: The findings revealed a positive relationship between self-control and both decisional and emotional forgiveness. A negative relationship was observed between self-control and interpersonal emotion regulation, as well as between interpersonal emotion regulation and emotional forgiveness (specifically, the reduction of negative emotions). In addition, interpersonal emotion regulation mediated the relationship between self-control and negative emotion reduction, though self-control attenuated the negative effect of interpersonal emotion regulation on forgiveness. Conclusions: The data obtained in the study indicate that self-control is a positive predictor of forgiveness, while interpersonal emotion regulation negatively predicts it. These results suggest that forgiveness depends more on internal (self-control) regulatory mechanisms than on external factors (interpersonal emotion regulation).