Although forgiveness has been associated with reduced anxiety in several studies, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder, the potential association between forgiveness and obsessive-compulsiveness has been generally unexplored. The current study examined the association between three dimensions of forgiveness and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms as mediated by locus of control (LOC) in a college student sample (N = 241). Forgiveness of self (FS) and of others, but not feeling forgiven by God, were associated with overall OC symptoms and with a majority of symptom subscales. LOC was limited in its role as a mediator that was restricted to associations with FS. Furthermore, LOC-Chance was the only dimension found to be a specific mediator, as control attributed internally and to powerful others did not mediate any of the forgiveness-OC associations. These findings are discussed in the context of both past and future research related to forgiveness, obsessive-compulsiveness, and control constructs.
","abstract_html":"<p>Although forgiveness has been associated with reduced anxiety in several studies, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder, the potential association between forgiveness and obsessive-compulsiveness has been generally unexplored. The current study examined the association between three dimensions of forgiveness and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms as mediated by locus of control (LOC) in a college student sample (N = 241). Forgiveness of self (FS) and of others, but not feeling forgiven by God, were associated with overall OC symptoms and with a majority of symptom subscales. LOC was limited in its role as a mediator that was restricted to associations with FS. Furthermore, LOC-Chance was the only dimension found to be a specific mediator, as control attributed internally and to powerful others did not mediate any of the forgiveness-OC associations. These findings are discussed in the context of both past and future research related to forgiveness, obsessive-compulsiveness, and control constructs.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Conway-Williams, Elizabeth"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MA (Master of Arts)","degree_level":"Thesis - unrestricted","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2011,"date_issued":"2011-08-17T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2011-08-17T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:20:14Z","subjects":["forgiveness","obsessive-compulsive symptoms","locus of control","college students","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Social Psychology and Interaction","Sociology"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1339","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Conway-Williams, Elizabeth"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["1990-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2011-08-17T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - unrestricted"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MA (Master of Arts)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["forgiveness","obsessive-compulsive symptoms","locus of control","college students","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Social Psychology and Interaction","Sociology"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright by the authors."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/2530/viewcontent/Conway_WilliamsE073011f.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1339"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Although forgiveness has been associated with reduced anxiety in several studies, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder, the potential association between forgiveness and obsessive-compulsiveness has been generally unexplored. The current study examined the association between three dimensions of forgiveness and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms as mediated by locus of control (LOC) in a college student sample (N = 241). Forgiveness of self (FS) and of others, but not feeling forgiven by God, were associated with overall OC symptoms and with a majority of symptom subscales. LOC was limited in its role as a mediator that was restricted to associations with FS. Furthermore, LOC-Chance was the only dimension found to be a specific mediator, as control attributed internally and to powerful others did not mediate any of the forgiveness-OC associations. These findings are discussed in the context of both past and future research related to forgiveness, obsessive-compulsiveness, and control constructs.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Forgiveness Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms and Locus of Control in a College Sample."]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Conway-Williams, Elizabeth"],"dc:date.available":["1990-01-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2011-08-17T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Although forgiveness has been associated with reduced anxiety in several studies, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder, the potential association between forgiveness and obsessive-compulsiveness has been generally unexplored. The current study examined the association between three dimensions of forgiveness and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms as mediated by locus of control (LOC) in a college student sample (N = 241). Forgiveness of self (FS) and of others, but not feeling forgiven by God, were associated with overall OC symptoms and with a majority of symptom subscales. LOC was limited in its role as a mediator that was restricted to associations with FS. Furthermore, LOC-Chance was the only dimension found to be a specific mediator, as control attributed internally and to powerful others did not mediate any of the forgiveness-OC associations. These findings are discussed in the context of both past and future research related to forgiveness, obsessive-compulsiveness, and control constructs.
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