Annotated Bibliography.

Journal of Psychology and Christianity

2019, Vol. 38, No.3, 193-195

Copyright 2019 Christian Association for Psychological Studies

ISSN 0733-4273

193

the academic as well as the business mar- ketplace. The process leads to much disap- pointment—the vast majority of today’s inquiries produce a letter of “regrets”—but also greater assurance of both quality and fit with donor intent.

So, has the Templeton Foundation invest- ment in research on forgiveness and other virtues corresponded to increased output in those areas? To assess this, we searched PsycINFO for pertinent words in scholarly article titles for the years preceding and fol- lowing Templeton funding initiatives for for- giveness and also for the later funding of individual grants for gratitude and humility. (A title search will miss many pertinent arti- cles, but should show any trend.) Figure 1 shows the mushrooming growth in articles relative to the timing of RFPs in these areas. We supplement these hard data with a case example. One of the initial grantees was clin- ical psychophysiologist Charlotte Witvliet (with Myers recused during the consideration of her proposal).

Charlotte Witvliet’s Perspective I am happy to share my story. The forgive-

ness RFP was announced my first semester as a new PhD faculty member. After training in trauma, emotion, and psychophysiology at Purdue University and a clinical internship at the Durham VA Medical Center, the RFP came at a key point in my professional deci- sion-making (and a terrible time in my per- sonal life: my mother was dying). With JTF funding, I undertook two major studies—one tested the psychophysiological side effects of offense rumination, grudges, empathy, and forgiveness of real-life offenders (Witvliet, Ludwig, & VanderLaan, 2001), and another assessed forgiving others and oneself in mili- tary veterans with PTSD (Witvliet, Phipps, Feldman, & Beckham, 2004).

With other funded researchers, I partici- pated in the initiative’s professional confer- ences—meeting scholars across specialties.

Response: Finding and Funding Forgiveness—and Other Virtues

David G. Myers Charlotte van Oyen Witvliet

Hope College

In this response to Everett Worthington (2019), David Myers recalls his collaboration on the Templeton forgiveness initiative and then invites Charlotte Witvliet to offer a grantee perspective.

David Myers’ Perspective “What does the Templeton Foundation

fund?,” mused John Templeton’s daughter, Anne Zimmerman. “I’ll tell you what it funds. It’s whatever daddy wants.”

And so it was, during the Foundation’s early years—with grants going to whomever caught Sir John’s attention. That personalized decision making led to some pioneering work—putting spirituality and health into medical school curricula, for example. But it also seemed to me (DM), as an early advisor and later trustee, to support some nice- sounding work but without a sound process.

In 1997, that changed when the Foundation initiated its first request for proposals (RFP) with an accompanying process for profes- sional reviews and ratings by peer scientific experts. As Ev Worthington’s co-chair (if the truth be known, he was both the “worker ant” and “senior director” of our joint effort), I wondered whether there would be many scholars interested in doing research on a “soft” virtue such as forgiveness. I was, there- fore, stunned and delighted by the over- whelming response—producing 236 inquiries, from which we invited 136 proposals, and ultimately funded 29—with more, as Ev explains, eventually supported by other fund- ing partners under his leadership.

In addition to the scholarship and media by-products—including Ev’s own 500+ interviews—the forgiveness RFP, as Ev rightly notes, became “a prototype” for future Templeton grant initiatives. The pro- cess normalized engagement of expert reviewers for all substantial proposals to the Foundation. This increased quality-con- trol process exemplified Sir John’s belief in the value of open and free competition—in

194 RESPONSE: FINDING AND FUNDING FORGIVENESS

and the Campaign had intentionally devel- oped documentaries and cultivated media attention. Martin Doblemeier interviewed researchers at one Campaign-hosted confer- ence, harvesting ideas and footage for his documentary. Continental Airlines filmed an in-flight forgiveness video, and CNN Time Newsstand filmed our lab for a segment on forgiveness. Early on, newspapers and maga- zines comprised the primary media contacts. Today, radio spots, web-based practices (e.g., Greater Good), blogs, podcasts, and books continue to disseminate discoveries.

As multi-disciplinary conferences emerged, I learned again why I love the liberal arts. Engaging in sustained conversations about forgiveness with theologians, philosophers, political scientists, and biologists across world- views and cultures promotes mutual under- standing that deepens the very

What a joy to develop relationships and learn new ideas! In the early years, it was possible to read nearly every article about forgiveness. Soon, the small subfield had become vibrant, engaging most major areas within psychology. My own contributions have developed programmatically, adding new physiological variables with technologi- cal advances and new designs to examine victims and transgressors, justice and forgive- ness, repentance and self-forgiveness, and nonclinical and clinical populations.

Media interest in my first forgiveness and psychophysiology study caught me by sur- prise. In those days, the hours I spent on the phone with journalists [125+ interviews to date] weren’t recognized as part of a scholar’s work, so I viewed the extra hours as teaching and service—with the hope that our collective efforts would leaven cultural conversations. Little did I know at the time, Ev Worthington

“Forgiv*” in “scholarly journals” article titles (Total = 2132; 1997 = 19, 2017 = 159):

1990-2017 (years)

“Gratitud*” in “scholarly journals” article titles (Total = 504; 2000 = 3, 2017 = 89):

1990-2017 (years)

“Humility” in “scholarly journals” article titles (Total = 248; 2000 = 1, 2017 = 48):

1990-2017 (years)

Figure 1. Selected virtues in PsycINFO article titles, per year

JTF grants JTF grants

JTF grants

MYERS AND WITVLIET 195

perspective-taking and regard for one another that is at the heart of forgiveness.

In time, I was asked to write a summary for Sir John about “spiritual information that had been learned about forgiveness through sci- entific studies.” Later, an event was devel- oped to mark 100 years since Sir John’s birth in Sewanee, TN. In summarizing develop- ments in forgiveness, I showed graphs depict- ing the burgeoning post-RFP scholarly and public resource outputs. Similar surges were evident in newspapers, popular magazines, and publicly available library sources. More than a dozen documentaries addressed for- giveness. A Campaign partner—the Fetzer Institute—funded PBS stations and communi- ty agency partnerships to develop classroom conversation guides, podcasts, and library partnerships. The APA compiled publications and materials for a United Nations workshop. Increasingly, forgiveness was discussed across scientific, societal, and spiritual domains.

It had become clear that the scholarly and cultural conversation had shifted: • fr om forgive and forget to forgive and

remember truthfully • from either justice or forgiveness to both

justice and forgiveness • from forgiveness makes you a doormat to

genuine forgiveness is a sign of strength • from forgiveness is for religious people to

forgiveness is for anyone • from forgiveness is spiritual to forgiveness is

spiritual and physically embodied • from forgiveness is for the benefit of the

offender (religious) or the self (secular) to forgiveness benefits the one forgiven, the forgiver, and others

• from forgiveness and reconciliation to for- giveness even when reconciliation or restoration to a position or role is not possi- ble, safe, or wise

• from forgiveness means going back to the way things were to forgiveness creates a new future that integrates the past

• from divine forgiveness and interpersonal forgiveness to divine forgiveness, interper- sonal forgiveness, self-forgiveness, and resolving anger with God

• from forgiveness is a specific response to forgiveness can be a response/state that unfolds over time, and it can be a disposi- tion/trait that characterizes people

• from forgiveness is one thing to forgiveness is multifaceted (e.g., a decision and/or change of heart, varying by relational context, offense type and severity, personality, religious and spiritual worldview, and culture) My own view is that forgiveness is a moral

response to relational injustice that reckons with the wrongdoing, relinquishes resentment and retaliation toward the person responsible for the hurtful transgression, and desires good transformation for that person. Thus, forgive- ness resists both minimizing offenses and defining people in terms of their offenses. Empathy and compassion foster forgiveness—which flourishes best in contexts of safety and accountability. In addition, for- giveness—whether given or received—has beneficial psychophysiological side effects.

It remains evident now—over two decades after the RFP—that JTF’s decision to fund for- giveness research by emerging and developed scholars and to cultivate scientific and societal engagement made a remarkable impact. For that, and for the transformative effect on my research trajectory, I am deeply grateful to The John Templeton Foundation, Everett Wor- thington, David Myers, the Campaign, and its funding partners.

References

Witvliet, C. V. O., Ludwig, T. E., & Vander Laan, K. L. (2001). Granting forgiveness or harboring grudges: Implications for emotions, physiology, and health. Psychological Science, 12, 117-123. doi:10.1111/1467-9280.00320

Witvliet, C. V. O., Phipps, K. A., Feldman, M. E., & Beckham, J. C. (2004). Posttraumatic mental and physical health correlates of forgiveness and reli- gious coping in military veterans. Jour nal of Traumatic Str ess, 17, 269-273. doi:10.1023/ B:JOTS.0000029270.47848.e5

Worthington, E. L., Jr. (2019). A campaign for for- giveness research: A lesson in studying virtue. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 38, 184- 190.

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