Forgiveness and chronic low back pain: A preliminary study examining the relationship of forgiveness to pain, anger, and psychological distress

James W. Carson, Francis J. Keefe, Veeraindar Goli, Anne Marie Fras, Thomas R. Lynch, Steven R. Thorp, Jennifer L. Buechler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

80 Scopus citations

Abstract

Clinical observations suggest that many patients with chronic pain have difficulty forgiving persons they perceive as having unjustly offended them in some way. By using a sample of 61 patients with chronic low back pain, this study sought to determine the reliability and variability of forgiveness assessments in patients and to examine the relationship of forgiveness to pain, anger, and psychological distress. Standardized measures were used to assess patients' current levels of forgiveness, forgiveness self-efficacy, pain, anger, and psychological distress. Results showed that forgiveness-related constructs can be reliably assessed in patients with persistent pain, and that patients vary considerably along dimensions of forgiveness. Furthermore, correlational analyses showed that patients who had higher scores on forgiveness-related variables reported lower levels of pain, anger, and psychological distress. Additional analyses indicated that state anger largely mediated the association between forgiveness and psychological distress, as well as some of the associations between forgiveness and pain. These findings indicate that forgiveness can be reliably assessed in patients with persistent pain, and that a relationship appears to exist between forgiveness and important aspects of living with persistent pain.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)84-91
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Pain
Volume6
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2005
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Anger
  • Chronic low back pain
  • Forgiveness
  • Pain
  • Psychological distress

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine

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