Introduction
Human nature demands utmost satisfactory from everything and everyone around us. The demand towards satisfaction dictates the relationship we have with other people. This feature is developed involuntarily as people create relationships from different perspectives and preferences. The existence of these relationships is greatly dependent on the kind interaction we have with people. Regardless of this natural selection, a healthy relationship is created by the inclusion of numerous factors that promote human satisfaction. For instance, kind and polite people tend to have numerous relationships as compared with rude and cruel people. The nature of the interaction determines the extent of the relationships. In an example, forgiveness is an involuntary demand that most relationships require.
Maio et.al (2008) describes forgiveness as a way of acceptance and tolerance of a person after committing a mistake. The author further point out that forgiveness is also demanded by the need to retain relationships and interactions (Maio et.al, 2011). For this reason, one may point out that forgiveness is an important factor in family and intimate relationships. What is the main role of forgiveness in family and intimate relationships? Is forgiveness a mandatory requirement in these forms of relationships?
Articles summary
Safarzadeh, S., Esfahaniasl, M. & Bayat, M. (2011). The relationship between forgiveness, perfectionism and intimacy and marital satisfaction in Ahwaz Islamic Azad University Married Students. Middle-East Journal of Scientific Research, 9 (6): 778-784.
The article strives to justify the assertion that forgiveness is a mandatory requirement in family and intimate relationships. The justification argument is based on that people in the family or intimate relationships people are required to develop a way in which they could heal from emotional stress. Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat (2011) assert that forgiveness offers a mechanism that could heal a person from emotional stress that may arise from intimate relationships. The authors further point out that, forgiveness creates a sense of satisfaction towards someone (Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat, 2011).
The article justifies these claims by carrying out a research in married students. The research aims at justifying the hypotheses that there is a relationship between satisfaction and forgiveness in the life of married students. The research used the Family Forgiveness Scale (FFS). The participants were 229 female and 113 male (Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat, 2011). The research tool is created to consist of 40 items; 20 items on existing marital relations and 20 items on main family relations. The research tool also included a questionnaire aimed at analyzing the extent of intimacy in each relationship tested. The response obtained was scaled, and the level of intimacy in the relationship determined. The level of intimacy would then be compared to the level at which the couples valued and practiced forgiveness (Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat, 2011).
The results obtained depicted that there is a significant relationship between marital satisfaction and forgiveness. In addition, all couples with successful and lasting marital relationship cited that forgiveness is always an important factor in the relationship. Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat (2011) are of the assumption that forgiveness increases marital satisfaction of both couples. The authors further point out that, couples, feel more inclined to remain in a marital relationship if forgiveness if often practiced (Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat, 2011). Among other factors, the article is of the general assumption that forgiveness strengthens marital relations.
Maio, G., Thomas, G., Carnelly, K. & Finchman, F. (2008). Unraveling the Role of Forgiveness in Family Relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 94 (2): 307–319.
In this article, the authors present a research that aims at identifying and analyzing the role of forgiveness in family relations. Maio et.al (2008) is of the assumption that family relations cannot be selected or influenced by personal selection. For this reason, family relations are dependent on the ability of members to develop mechanisms that strengthen family bonds. In addition, the article is of the assumption that tolerance and forgiveness play an integral part in family relations. Maio et.al (2008) defines forgiveness as a way in which the forgiver eliminates native mentality and perception towards other people. The article asserts that forgiveness is mandatory in family relations.
The research used the participation of 342 people from 114 families (Maio et.al, 2008). From each family, members of the opposite sex were selected. Moreover, participants were from different age groups. The participants are also selected from different ethnic affiliations. The research is mostly conducted through questionnaires and lab tests. One major factor determined is the individual ability to forgive a family member. The relationship between the participants and their family members was also determined. The questionnaire also includes determination of instances that the participant was offended by a family member and how they developed a forgiving tendency. The relationship quality in family members who practiced forgiveness is determined.
Compare and contrast
The two articles used different relation settings. In the article by Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat (2011), marital relationships were used as focus material. Maio et.al (2008) on the other hand analyzes family relations. Different from marital relations, the latter analyzed the relationship between all family members; children and parents, children and children. Regardless of the different settings, both researches used questionnaire and personal approaches in determining the effectiveness of forgiveness. In addition, the participants’ responses were independent and based on their opinion and experience. This increased the quality and reliability of the response collected.
The conclusions derived from both researches create an assertion that forgiveness enhances the quality of relations in both marital and family settings. In the research by Safarzadeh, Esfahaniasl & Bayat (2011), the quality of marital relations is increased if couples practice forgiveness occasionally. This is based on that forgiveness increases marital satisfaction. The same conclusion is derived by Maio et.al (2008) who points out that the family relations are directly influenced by the ability of members to practice forgiveness. In addition, forgiveness boosts the individual perception on the family setting. From this analysis, one may point that both articles develop a conclusion that forgiveness strengthens the bond in marital and family relations.
Conclusion
References
Maio, G., Thomas, G., Carnelly, K. & Finchman, F. (2008). Unraveling the Role of Forgiveness in Family Relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 94 (2): 307–319.
Safarzadeh, S., Esfahaniasl, M. & Bayat, M. (2011). The relationship between forgiveness, perfectionism and intimacy and marital satisfaction in Ahwaz Islamic Azad University Married Students. Middle-East Journal of Scientific Research, 9 (6): 778-784.
