Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Research in Psychology
Year: 2024
DOI:
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Forgiveness, Disciplinary Experience and Subjective Well-Being across Sexual Orientations
Vivixa Rajesh Jain and Dr. Santhosh K.R
ABSTRACT:
The present study examined the relationship between forgiveness, childhood disciplinary experience, and subjective well-being among young adults across different sexual orientations. Data was collected online from 268 [18-25 years] Indian participants by convenience sampling strategy, including 145 heterosexuals and 115 sexual minorities, who completed three standardised tests- Heartland Forgiveness Scale, Disciplinary Experience Measure and two scales measuring subjective well-being [Satisfaction with Life Scale, Scale of Positive and Negative Experiences]. Results from Mann- Whitney U test showed significant differences in subjective well-being, with heterosexuals scoring higher than sexual minorities. Forgiveness was positively correlated to warmth experience (r = 0.266, p < .001), life satisfaction (r = 0.413, p < .001), and affective experience (r = 0.485, p < .001), but it was inversely related to punishment experiences (r = -0.168, p < .01). MANCOVA indicated that forgiveness (F = 33.51, p < .001) was a predictor of subjective well-being. Hierarchical regression showed that warmth experience was a predictor of both components of subjective well-being, life satisfaction (β = 0.408, p = .001) and affective experience (β = 0.503, p = .001), outweighing the effects of punishment. The study highlights the role of forgiveness and positive childhood experiences in increasing subjective well-being for sexual minorities.
keywords: childhood disciplinary experiences, forgiveness, sexual orientation subjective well-being, young adults