Experiences of Forgiveness With People Who Have a Problematic Use of Pornography: A Phenomenological Study

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of participants in early recovery from self-perceived problematic porn use (PPU). The theory guiding this research study was attachment theory, which was developed by John Bowlby, a physiatrist who focused on the overall development of a child’s emotional development. The study aimed at trying to discover if there are barriers to a person for receiving forgiveness from God when in early recovery. Research indicated there are guilt and shame that can be reasons to these barriers for those who struggle with self-perceived pornography use as Christians. Methods used in this study were snowball sampling to gather the clients, interviews in person or through Zoom, and finally, data were transcribed and then member checked for accuracy. Three themes surfaced from the study: unforgiveness, forgiveness, and impact on forgiveness. These the themes helped to determine barriers to unforgiveness or lack thereof. The study determined that forgiveness was almost adamant when from God, and the ability to receive it from God was contingent on one’s understanding of God. Lastly, most felt to receive forgiveness from those they may have hurt had little impact because God’s forgiveness superseded their family or loved ones.