Forgiveness: A China-Western Europe Comparison

Abstract

The authors assessed forgiveness among Chinese (n = 738) and Western European (n = 810) participants using the Forgivingness Questionnaire (E. Mullet et al., 2003). They found that between the 2 samples, (a) the overall level of dispositional forgiveness was similar, (b) lasting resentment was higher among the Chinese than among the Western Europeans, and (c) sensitivity to the circumstances of the offense was higher among the Chinese than among the Western Europeans. These results contrast with what researchers have observed in previous studies in which forgiveness has been shown to be systematically higher in collectivistic cultures than in individualistic cultures. The authors suggest that there are possibly many other differences across cultures, namely in religion, that may impact views of forgiveness.

Keywords:

• China
• collectivism
• forgiveness
• France
• individualism
• resentment