The Role of Forgiveness and Religiosity in the Development of Suicidal Ideation - Annotated Bibliography Example

Braaten, L. & Darling, C. (1962). Suicidal tendencies among college students. The Psychiatric Quarterly, 1-4, 665-692. The researchers conducted a quantitative study on suicidal tendencies among college students at the Mental Health Clinic of Cornell University. In order to facilitate the analysis the researchers classified their respondents into three groups, namely, ideation, threat, or attempt. The researchers reported that a significant portion of their sample fell under suicide attempt. To validate their findings, the researchers made use of a control group as a point of comparison for the results they obtained from their sample composed of suicidal respondents. It was specified in the study that suicidal tendencies manifest three major signs—meaninglessness, poor self-worth, and exposure to suicidal ideation. The researchers reported that that there is no significant difference in the frequency of suicidal ideation between suicidal and non-suicidal individuals due to religion. Hence the current study chooses to include this quantitative research because it could serve as a counterargument to the prevailing idea that religiosity lessens the development of suicidal ideation. The researcher will consider counterevidence in order to verify the validity and integrity of evidence supporting the hypothesis that greater religiosity reduces the risk of suicidal ideation. This study focuses on psychological factors of suicidal ideation, but it also gives a brief explanation of the possible reasons why religion is not a moderating variable among the respondents. The researchers made an attempt to determine the variables that hinder the moderating effect of religiosity on the development of suicidal ideation among teenagers. It also provides insight on the dominance of psychological variables in the suicide literature. It, consequently, provides insight on potential strategies to draw the attention of more academics to the role of religiosity and forgiveness in the prevention of suicidal ideation. Colucci, E. (2008). Religion and Spirituality: Along the Suicidal Path. Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior, 38(2), 229-244. The author adopted the assumption that psychological distress can be eased by religion and forgiveness. Therefore, religion and forgiveness can positively influence individuals’ mental wellbeing. But there are researchers who claim that religiosity and ability to forgive are not sufficient to reduce the possibility of developing suicidal ideation during puberty. This is one of the main claims of this study which is quite relevant to the current study. This gap in the literature should be paid attention to in future studies. Quantitative studies are needed in order to determine the exact impact of religiosity and forgiveness on the development of suicidal ideation, especially among adolescents. Colucci (2008) tried to organize available literature exploring the connection between religiosity and suicidal ideation. This is highly relevant to the hypothesis that a person with higher religiosity is less likely to have suicidal ideation. This study is also useful because it provides a general idea about the belief of leading religions, particularly Christianity and Jewish faith, on suicide; an overview of the three major theoretical perspectives that have hypothesized about the connection between religiosity and suicidal ideation—network theory, religious commitment theory, and integration theory. After a brief description of these important theories, Colucci (2008) presented a review of the studies on religiosity focusing on suicidal ideation. Ultimately, this study is useful for the current research because it provides potential intervention approaches for suicidal individuals. The author specified the definite limitations that further studies should deal with in order to successfully identify the actual impact of religiosity and forgiveness on suicidal ideation. Exline, J.J., Yali, A.M., & Sanderson, W.C. (2000). Guilt, discord, and alienation: The role of religious strain in depression and suicidality. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(12), 1481-1496. This article is one of the most valuable studies for the current research. The researchers tried to prove the assumption that depression and suicidal ideation may develop if there is an absence of religion and a presence of religious conflict. The researchers argued that even though religion can be a strong form of social support it can create adverse effects in case of religious conflict. Religious conflict contributes to feelings of worthlessness and isolation. This study also informs the current research of the fact that self-deprecating perspectives could show itself in religious values, like distrusting that a person’s sins will be forgiven. This is a quantitative study that investigated college students taking psychology courses. The researchers discovered that respondents generally reported greater degrees of religious security than conflict. Moreover, they discovered that religious conflict was positively related to depression, although religious security and spirituality were unchanged. The measures of religious detachment and separations from God were separately related to depression. This study tells the current research that the existence of religious conflict may deserve emphasis for treatment. It argues that future studies could assist in determining the variables that separate individuals from God, and they particularly explain a possible variable of religiosity as affecting a person’s feeling of alienation. With respect to suicidal ideation, the researchers provided insight on whether suicidal individuals is trying to avoid the feelings of guilt by taking one’s own life, and they stressed the importance of additional studies on forgiveness. Harris, A. et al. (2006). Effects of a group forgiveness intervention on forgiveness, perceived stress, and trait-anger. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62(6), 715-733. So far there are very few comprehensive, adequate studies focusing on forgiveness. Harris and colleagues (2006) made the very first effort to conduct an intervention program on forgiveness with a huge number of respondents. The intervention group obtained forgiveness counseling that focused on the concepts of guided imagery, mindfulness introspection, and cognitive argumentation. The intervention centered on major elements of forgiveness—providing more circumstantial and personal view of oneself and of the transgressor, blaming the transgressor not as much as before, and feeling less offended. This study informs the current research of the implications of forgiveness intervention for suicidal ideation, such as the likelihood that skills-oriented forgiveness program could be successful in mitigating anger as a coping mechanism, alleviating physical health syndromes and perceived stress, and thus could contribute to the reduction of vulnerability to suicidal ideation. Basically, the relevance of this study to the current research is rooted in its objective, which is to assess the impact of forgiveness training on three results: health-related psychosocial factors like trait-anger and perceived stress; forgiveness-possibility in new circumstances; and, offense-particular forgiveness. The study informs the current research that forgiveness intervention can lessen adverse emotions and thoughts, including suicidal ideation, in victimized individuals. In other words, the study shows that forgiveness intervention is effective in reducing suicidal ideation among victims of transgressions. Hirsch, J., Webb, J., & Jeglic, E. (2011). Forgiveness, Depression, and Suicidal Behavior among a Diverse Sample of College Students. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 67, 1-11. This study is exceptionally useful for the current research because of its comprehensive examination and explanation of the correlation between the ability to forgive and risk of suicidal ideation. According to the researchers, being forgiving prevents individuals from developing mental disorders. Forgiveness provide meaning to people’s lives. The researchers used a quantitative method to determine the correlation between forgiveness and suicidal ideation. The sample was composed of students suffering from depressive symptoms. The researchers found out that depression increases the likelihood of developing suicidal ideation, but self-forgiveness could moderate the nature and intensity of such suicidal ideation. Hence the researchers proposed that future studies should thoroughly take into consideration the variable of self-forgiveness as a moderating factor for depression and suicidal ideation. Such considerations could contribute to the formulation of effective suicide prevention programs. This study is very important because it is the first to evaluate the core relationships between suicidal ideation, depression, and forgiveness. The findings, generally, are not surprising and further strengthen the literature arguing for the useful consequences of meaning-oriented aspects for individual wellbeing. Meaning-oriented, emotional, and cognitive factors, like forgiveness, could be related to poor psychopathology, and even though future studies are required, strengthening self- and other-forgiveness could be a useful means to lessen the interpersonal anxiety and depressive symptom that usually provoke suicidal ideation. This is highly relevant to the current research because of its thorough analysis of the nature and outcome, or cause and effect, of the relationship between forgiveness and suicidal ideation. Kaplan, K.J. et al. (2008). Zenoism, Depression and Attitudes Toward Suicide and Physician-Assisted Suicide: the Moderating Effects of Religiosity and Gender. Ethics & Med, 167. The researchers conducted an analysis of two quantitative investigations. The first one focuses on the influence of forgiveness and zenoism on vulnerability to suicidal ideation. The second one, which is somewhat irrelevant to the current research, focuses on the issue of physician-assisted suicide (PAS). This study is useful because it thoroughly discusses the correlation between the ability to forgive and suicidal ideation. It is particularly relevant to the hypotheses that a person with higher religiosity is less likely to have suicidal ideation, and a person with higher forgiveness will have less suicidal ideation. A problem could be viewed by an individual as an unusual occurrence that does not have religious importance, or could be excessively understood as Zeno the Stoic did—a symbol of the gods’ approval and disapproval. Such inclination to understand life miseries within the perspective of zenoism ironically endows a philosophical system for a pursuit of meaning in what could otherwise be regarded unimportant occurrences in one’s life. The outcomes of this study point to five important aspects. First, men adhere to zenoism more than women; second, nonreligious individuals adhere to zenoism more than religious people and have greater suicidal ideation and preference toward PAS; third, the inclination to adhere to zenoism is negatively associated with less suicidal ideation and depression for men and nonreligious individuals; fourth, the inclination to adhere to zenoism is directly associated with preference toward PAS and general suicidal ideation; and, fifth, common and self-particular preference toward PAS are different indicators, but both are directly associated with general suicidal ideation. This study basically shows that religion without meaning cannot help moderate suicidal ideation. Leenaars, A. & Domino, G. (1993). A Comparison of Community Attitudes towards Suicide in Windsor and Los Angeles. Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science, 25(2), 253. This article is chosen because it discusses the reason why suicide rate in Canada is greater than the U.S. It provides valuable insight on the level of religiosity between Canadians and Americans.This fact is somewhat interesting. Leenaars and Domino (1993) conducted a quantitative study wherein they studied two groups of community respondents, from Los Angeles and Windsor. Numerous countries across the globe have discovered high prevalence of suicide in the recent decades, including Canada and the United States. However, in spite of this major problem, and despite the numerous remarkable approaches or theories existing about suicide in various countries, only a handful of studies were conducted that evaluate suicidal ideation from a religious and cross-cultural point of view. This is the gap that the researchers are trying to reconcile, and which is relevant to the objective of the current study. This study and the current research both argue that it is important to recognize and gain accurate knowledge of the cultural and religious factors by which suicidal ideation takes place. Furthermore, cross-cultural studies provide an excellent point of view on suicidal ideation from various countries. Suicide rates are different between the U.S. and Canada, and religiosity among these countries’ people is one explanation for this difference. Canadians, according to this study, have a greater tendency to develop suicidal ideation than Americans because of the level of religious involvement. This cultural difference should be taken into consideration in the suicide literature. Religious involvement, as shown in this study, should be seriously taken into consideration in further studies. Liu, X. et al. (2012). Forgiveness as a Moderator of the Association between Victimization and Suicidal Ideation. Indian Pediatrics, 50(7), 685-8. This quantitative study is one of most relevant articles to the current research because of its thorough investigation of the correlation between forgiveness, suicidal ideation, and victimization. The researchers reported that frequent and intense victimization, alongside a poor capacity to forgive one’s transgressor were strong contributors to the development of suicidal ideation. The researchers observed in the sample that a high degree of forgiveness can lessen the intensity of the suicidal ideation of those individuals who experienced or experiencing victimization. The ability to forgive was discovered to be a defensive instrument against the growth of suicidal ideation in victimized individuals. Bullying is a widespread issue among adolescents. Research has revealed that recurrent bullying or victimization is related to greater suicidal ideation among adolescents. Nevertheless, few are understood about the protective variables that could mediate the correlation between suicidal ideation and victimization (Liu et al., 2012). Such understanding is crucial for the formulation of effective methods to lower the intensity of suicidal ideation in victimized youths. Liu and colleagues investigates forgiveness as a potential mediator between suicidal ideation and victimization, which is, consequently, highly useful for the current research. Forgiveness in this context implies the eagerness of victimized individuals to abandon their past anguish and moderate their hatred toward their offenders. This study informed the current research that forgiveness is directly associated with various mental health outcomes, such as greater degree of sympathy, self-worth, and less intense depression, anxiety, and resentment. McCullough, M. (2000). Forgiveness as Human Strength: Theory, Measurement, and Links to Well-being. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 19(1), 43-55. The researcher argues that numerous religions believe that forgiveness can work as a foundation of interpersonal, psychological, physical, and personal strength. This assumption can be subjected into empirical studies. The current literature on psychology, as well as general theory and research, is giving precise recommendations on how to empirically examine such ideas. This study is specifically useful for the current research because it views forgiving as something that encourages stability in interpersonal connections by restoring the unavoidable harms and wrongs that take place in social interaction. Moreover, the current research will certainly benefit from the study’s conceptual framework theorizing that forgiveness is a positive social transformation in the stimuli to prevent or attempt vengeance against an offender. The researcher examined psychological and social variables that are contributing factors and associates of forgiving. And, most importantly, correlation between forgiveness and suicidal ideation are investigated. This study also informs the current research about the fact that forgiveness may not universally be directly correlated to mental strength, or lower level of suicidal ideation. It is likely that in specific interpersonal contexts, individuals with an eagerness to forgive may threaten their mental health. Several researchers report that forgiveness could be an indicator for relational disorder, for instance, in relationships marked by physical violence. Some researchers proposed that individuals who are more eager to forgive their spouses for physical maltreatment are also more likely to remain in the violent relationship (McCullough, 2000).This fact is worth exploring and including in the current research. Peltzer, K. (2005). Religiosity, Personal Distress and Minor Psychiatric Morbidity among Black Students in South Africa. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 33(7), 723+ The objective of this study is closely in line with that of the current research—to explore the idea that religiosity and ability to forgive positively influence personal view of life and death among adolescents in South Africa. Findings show that most of the respondents manifest a high level of religiosity. Several religious factors like being affiliated with the Christian faith were related to less Perceived Stress. Secondary psychiatric illness was directly related to religiosity, whereas forgiveness and meaningful life was indirectly related to secondary psychiatric illness. It implies that religiosity has a stronger impact on mental wellbeing than ability to forgive. Results reveal that several religious factors were directly related to mental wellbeing whereas others were indirectly or not associated, hence not fully substantiating the connection between mental wellbeing and religiosity. Concerning secondary psychiatric illness and religious involvement, Koenig and colleagues (2001) report that nonreligious individuals and Jews have increased vulnerability to depression and religious people may have weak vulnerability to depressive symptoms, and thus, suicidal ideation. This study reinforces the assumption of the current research that religiosity plays an essential role in preventing the growth of suicidal ideation and helping individuals deal with the impact of stressful life episodes. Basically, spirituality or religious activities could reduce depression or vulnerability to depressive symptoms. Regarding anxiety, findings show that religion in general—particularly inherent religiosity has a tendency to cushion a person from anxiety, and hence, suicidal tendencies. Religiosity could be particularly crucial in safeguarding individuals with severe health disorder from developing anxiety associated with impending death. Reiner, S. (2007). Religious and Spiritual Beliefs: An Avenue to Explore End-of-Life Issues. Adultspan Journal, 6(2), 111+ The researcher studied how religious involvement can change an individual’s worldview, especially with regard to life and death. Based on the findings the research outlines several suggestions that could help counselors deal more successfully with their patients’ problems. This study is relevant to the current research because it thoroughly discusses the idea that spiritual and religious beliefs influence psychological health and attitudes toward death. Religiosity and the ability to forgive are viewed as protective tools against suicidal ideation, untimely death, and depression; such beliefs also help people understand serious illness, lessen the fear of death, and reduce emotional problem. Gaining knowledge of the importance of spiritual and religious beliefs of individuals can give the therapist an array of information and a way to examine how individuals deal with impending death. This study is especially useful for the current research because of its comprehensive discussion of the ACA Code of 2005, which functions as a support and guide to counselors helping patients with suicidal ideation. It also include a discussion of the numerous therapies that counselors and patients can select from when collaborating on end-of-life dilemmas that can integrate spiritual issues, such as life evaluation and meaning-oriented psychotherapy. The discussion on these therapies is very helpful for the current research because it provides insight on appropriate intervention strategies against the development of suicidal ideation. It provides a good explanation on how religiosity and the concept of forgiveness can be used to lessen suicidal ideation. Rutter, P. & Behrendt, A. (2004). Adolescent Suicide Risk: Four Psychosocial Factors. Adolescence, 39(154), 295+ The researchers’ main argument is that suicidal ideation studies have primarily focused on contributing factors that are demographically based, which is a weakness in the literature. Demographic variables, such as family status, sexual preference, age, and religion are used as the basis of numerous studies exploring suicidal ideation. Such studies were able to identify individuals who are more likely to attempt suicide but were unable to explain why certain individuals or social groups have a greater tendency to commit suicide. This is the gap in the literature which Rutter and Behrendt (2004) try to address, and one which is very valuable to the current study. The researchers cited several proofs of such gap in the literature. For instance, alcoholic and/or drug addicted teenagers are believed to have a greater tendency to develop suicidal ideation and attempt suicide. Such findings are helpful but insufficient because it fails to shed light on the exact nature of the suicidal ideation of adolescents. These studies also show that teenagers of specific age, gender, and socioeconomic status are more at risk of suicidal ideation. However, taking into consideration only demographic aspects could obviously divert attention from or misidentify individuals who are actually at risk of developing suicidal ideation. Absence of religiosity, spirituality, and the ability to forgive is considered by the researchers as a moderating variable in the suicidal ideation of adolescents, which makes the study useful for the current research. The researchers look at the issue of religiosity and suicidal ideation within the context of psychosocial factors, which are an aspect relevant to the current study, and which should be included in the discussion. Seena, F. (1998). Islamic and Baha’i Views of Psychiatry. The Israel Journal of Psychiatry and Related Sciences, 35(2), 146+ This study explores how Islamic faith views death and handles mental health problems, like depression. There are scientific proofs that substantiate the assumption that rates of suicide are substantially lower in Islamic nations. Several researchers have reported that Islamic people in Nigeria and Singapore manifest considerably lower levels of suicidal ideation compared to other minorities. In contrast, clinical studies have shown that British Pakistani Muslim females are more at risk of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. This article is relevant to the current research because it explains whether particular religious factors have an impact on mental wellbeing, and vulnerability to suicidal ideation. It would seem from the study that Islam does influence the types of suicidal ideation that develop. The World Health Organization’s research on depressive illnesses reported that people with depression in Islamic countries, like Iran, experienced lower level of suicidal ideation and remorse. Other studies have verified that suicidal ideation have connections to religion in Islamic nations. Sweeney, L. (2011). Young Irish Male Perspectives on Depression and Peer Suicide. School of Public Health, Physiotherapy, and Population Science, 1-333. The researcher studied the frequency of suicidal ideation in young Irish males. He is interested in exploring psychological issues that usually occur in ordinary settings, especially with regard to adolescents. Ireland is facing a dire public health issue today—the prevalence of suicidal ideation among its young male population. The researcher specifically tried to determine the mental outlook of young Irish males about life and how they cope with everyday problems and challenges. This objective is very useful for the current research because it takes into account the concept of forgiveness and religiosity in its examination of the growth of suicidal ideation. Moreover, the study was innovative in a sense that it considered the usual environment where young males interact with one another. It showed how social interaction may heighten or reduce religious involvement, and thus affect how individuals cope with major life issues. This study used mixed-method research in order to achieve its objective. The findings informed the current research that support networks like peers of young Irish men often comprise purely male communication, where individual, psychological, and emotional problems may not be recognized, and are seldom mentioned or talked about. Nevertheless, the religious concept was determined as a major channel for expression of issues, suicidal ideation, and emotions in the support group of young Irish men; however expression within this religious setting was also discovered to weaken view of suicidal risk in the person. This study sheds light on one of the current study’s hypothesis, that a person with higher religiosity is less likely to have suicidal ideation. This hypothesis is not as straightforward as it is because there are underlying factors that complicate the situation, like religious alienation and conflict. Walters, J. (2013). The protective effects of religiousness and forgiveness for the link between peer victimization and mental health in adolescence. Blacksburg, Virginia: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. This study is valuable for the current research because of its investigation of the correlation between the level of forgiveness and vulnerability to psychological defects or suicidal ideation Another relevance of this study to the current research is that it shows that the elements widely believed needed to forgive might not all work similarly depending on the connection of the victim to the offender and whether or not the offense will persist. Most importantly, the study also stresses that average people’s ideas of forgiveness could affect how their forgiveness of offenders influences their vulnerability to suicidal ideation. It has been well-documented in the empirical literature on suicidal ideation that victimization, especially during adolescence, can greatly increase the vulnerability of an individual to suicidal ideation. Therefore the researcher tried to identify whether religiosity and forgiveness can reduce vulnerability to poor mental outcomes. The current research precisely aims to find out the same. Furthermore, forgiveness and religiosity could be associated in the sense that forgiveness could be a mediating factor in the relationship between mental health and religiousness. The researcher believes that religiosity and forgiveness affect vulnerability to suicidal ideation in different ways. Although religiosity promotes a forgiving attitude, it does not necessarily mean that when an individual becomes religiously involved s/he will acquire a high level of forgiveness. There are mediating factors between religiosity and forgiveness. Hence, the objective of the study to explore the connections among suicidal ideation, forgiveness, and religiosity, through quantitative methods (e.g. Structural Equation Modeling) is very relevant to the current research. Witvliet, C., Hinze, S., & Worthington, E. (2008). Unresolved Injustice: Christian Religious Commitment, Forgiveness, Revenge, and Cardiovascular Responding. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 27(2), 110+ This study focuses on the impact of religious devotion on a person’s capacity to forgive. The authors examined religious devotion in connection to forgiveness in self-proclaimed Christians. These self-proclaimed Christians were instructed to envision themselves as victims of a specific crime. The researchers were trying to know whether religious devotion is related to higher level of forgiveness. The researchers used psychophysiological methodologies and questionnaire. The analysis focuses on two main variables, namely, the physiological and emotional correlation to forgiveness The researchers reported that the degree of religious devotion was not related to dispositional anger, even though the more devoted Christians admitted having more forgiving tendencies and less revengeful thoughts. With regard to envisioning a property crime and its consequences, religious devotion was related to higher forgiveness. This study is useful for the current research because of its relevance to the third hypothesis: devout Christians will have a higher level of forgiveness than Protestants and Catholics who do not meet the criteria for being a devout Christian. Future studies will have to specifically determine whether devout Christians are more forgiving than less devout Protestants and Catholics. Thus far, there is a dearth of available empirical evidence on this topic. Because of the function forgiveness serves in dominant religions and particularly in Christianity, the correlation between religion and forgiveness should be given greater emphasis. Self-reports of religious devotion have been constantly associated with greater self-reported ability to forgive. Cohen and colleagues (2006), in comparing major religions, discovered that Jews and Protestant Christians diverged in their interpretation of and attitudes toward forgiveness. They discovered that Protestant Christians have fewer tendencies to think that some transgressions are unjustifiable or do not deserve forgiveness. Zhang, J. & Shenghua, J. (1996). Determinants of Suicide Ideation: A Comparison of Chinese and American College Students. Adolescence, 31, 451+ Empirical literature on the suicidal ideation of Chinese teens is inadequate. It is important to look at this topic because completed suicides are frequent among this group. Suicidal ideation of Chinese adolescents should be examined in order to prevent completed suicides. This gap in the literature is addressed by Zhang and Shenghua (1996). They also made a comparison between the suicidal ideation of Chinese and American college students. The frequency of suicide among American adolescents has increased sharply in the recent decades. Researchers discovered that among main determinants of suicide, substance abuse and depression are at the top of the list, whereas previous suicide attempts and suicidal ideation follow suit. This study is important to the current research because suicidal ideation and obvious plans to commit suicide raise suicide possibility, and a thorough knowledge of suicidal ideation among teens could result in more successful prevention. This study is chosen for the current study because of its discussion of the impact of cultural factors on suicidal ideation. The researchers made a comparison of contributing factors of suicidal ideation between Chinese and American adolescents. The researchers intended to explain the culture forces that strongly influenced suicide ideation. It is a well-known fact that culture and religion are strongly related to each other, hence making culture one of the important considerations for the current research. Culture, like religion, can explain people’s attitude toward forgiveness. Hypotheses It is widely known that religiosity and forgiveness have a positive impact on an individual’s psychological, emotional, and physical wellbeing. Numerous studies have attested to the fact that religiosity and forgiveness moderate the growth of suicidal ideation, especially for adolescents. However, even though these correlations are well-documented further research is still needed in this area because of some major gaps in the literature, like the use of cross-cultural methods in examining the correlation between forgiveness and suicidal ideation. Therefore, this study formulated three hypotheses, namely: (1) A person with higher religiosity is less likely to have suicidal ideation; (2) A person who scores high on the forgiveness scale will be less likely to have suicidal ideation; and (3) Devout Christians will have a higher level of forgiveness than Protestants and Catholics who do not meet the criteria for being a devout Christian. There are extensive and numerous findings to support the first two hypotheses, but there is a dearth of empirical literature on the third. Still, the third hypothesis deserves considerable emphasis because it has been proven that different religions have different views of life and death, forgiveness, and the ideal ways to cope with depression and stressful life events. The first hypothesis, which states that a person with higher religiosity is less likely to have suicidal ideation, is supported by a large number of researchers like Colucci (2008) who states that the protective effect of religion and forgiveness may have importance in lessening psychological pain and improving mental health of individuals, thus reducing suicidal ideation; Kaplan and colleagues (2008) reported that religious individuals are less at risk of suicidal ideation than their nonreligious counterparts; Peltzer (2005) showed that Several religious factors like being affiliated with the Christian faith were related to less Perceived Stress, and thus less suicidal ideation. Numerous other researchers substantiate this hypothesis. The second hypothesis, which states that a person who scores high on the forgiveness scale will be less likely to have suicidal ideation, is also widely supported by a large number of researchers, especially those who focused on victimization. For instance, Harris and colleagues (2006) report that forgiveness intervention can lessen adverse emotions and thoughts, including suicidal ideation, in victimized individuals; Hirsch and colleagues (2011) claim that meaning-oriented aspects, like forgiveness, a controlled coping mechanism may shield or moderate adverse mental health problems, and thus, suicidal ideation; Liu and colleagues (2012) found out that low forgiveness and high victimization were a strong determinant of suicidal ideation. Many others support this hypothesis. On the other hand, as mentioned a while ago, there are very few empirical studies on the third hypothesis, which states that a devout Christians will have a higher level of forgiveness than Protestants and Catholics who do not meet the criteria for being a devout Christian. There are some researchers who studied this subject matter like Cohen and colleagues (2006 as cited in Witvliet et al., 2008). They discovered that Jews and Protestant Christians diverged in their interpretation of and attitudes toward forgiveness and that Protestant Christians have fewer tendencies to think that some transgressions are unjustifiable or do not deserve forgiveness. This third hypothesis therefore requires greater attention. Read More