The Moderating Effect of Dispositional Forgiveness on Perceived Racial Discrimination and Depression for African American Adults

• Published in: Cultural diversity & ethnic minority psychology 2021-07, Vol.27 (3), p.511-520
• Main Authors: Brooks, Jasmin R., Hong, Judy H., Madubata, Ijeoma J., Odafe, Mary O., Cheref, Soumia, Walker, Rheeda L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Black People; Cognitive Discrimination; Female; Forgiveness; Human; Major Depression; Male; Race and Ethnic Discrimination; Racism; Religiosity; Symptoms; Test Construction
• ISSN: 1099-9809; 1939-0106
• DOI: 10.1037/cdp0000385

Objectives: Perceived racial discrimination is associated with depressive symptoms for African American adults; however, insight to protective factors for racism and depression in African Americans is limited. While current research suggests that dispositional forgiveness is an important factor in how people perceive and cope with interpersonal transgressions, few studies have examined its role in the context of racial discrimination. The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effect of forgiveness (beyond broader internalized religiosity) on the association between perceived racial discrimination and depressive symptoms in African American adults. Method: Sample included 101 African American adults (60.2% female; Mage = 21.90 years, SD = 4.93 years) who endorsed experiences of racial discrimination. Participants completed a questionnaire battery consisting of self-report measures of perceived experiences of racial discrimination, depression, dispositional forgiveness, and intrinsic religiosity. Results: Regression analyses showed dispositional forgiveness moderated the association between perceived racial discrimination and symptoms of depression above and beyond intrinsic religiosity (β = −.05, 95% CI [−.10, −.05], p < .05), such that the racial discrimination-depression association was significant for participants who reported low levels of dispositional forgiveness, but not for individuals who reported higher levels of dispositional forgiveness. Conclusions: These findings provide insight into the role of dispositional forgiveness in experiences of racial discrimination and suggest that cognitive flexibility serves as an adaptive coping strategy to experiencing discrimination. Public Significance Statement It has been suggested that the utilization of internal coping strategies is vital for marginalized populations that experience daily forms of overt racial discrimination. The results of this study suggest that dispositional forgiveness, a robust internal coping mechanism, can serve as an adaptive coping strategy associated with fewer depressive symptoms for African American adults who have experienced racial discrimination; this is true even after controlling for religious beliefs.