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Self-Forgiveness, Self-Harm, and Suicidal Behavior: Understanding the Role of Forgiving the Self in the Act of Hurting One’s Self

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Handbook of the Psychology of Self-Forgiveness

Abstract

Suicide is a significant public health problem, and suicide risk, as well as engagement in non-suicidal self injury, is often predicated on thwarted interpersonal functioning, feelings of internal distress, and a sense of hopelessness, all of which we argue are conceptually related to self-forgiveness. Maladaptive cognitive-emotional characteristics, including ruminative thoughts, feelings of shame and guilt, and negative emotions, are often present when a person is unforgiving of the self, perhaps for a transgression committed or a behavior omitted which caused harm. As well, the self-punitive impact of a perceived transgression may result in social withdrawal, and a desire to escape, both of which are strong predictors of suicide risk. Preliminary results, including in adolescents, college students, and veterans, suggest that self-forgiveness is beneficially related to self-injury and suicide risk. In original data collection for this chapter, using a community sample, we found that self-forgiveness was inversely related to lifetime history of suicide attempt, suicide ideation in the past year, and likelihood of making a future suicide attempt. Current self-forgiveness was also related to a greater likelihood of forgiving others in the future and, in turn, to less suicide risk. Therapeutically bolstering self-forgiveness may promote adaptive coping via cognitive restructuring (e.g., resolving the transgression), reductions in distress (e.g., less negative mood), and an ability to transcend seemingly hopeless or unforgivable situations, thereby reducing suicide risk.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, USA

    Jameson K. Hirsch

  2. Department of Community, Family, and Addiction Sciences, College of Human Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA

    Jon R. Webb

  3. Department of Psychology, Luther College, Decorah, IA, USA

    Loren L. Toussaint

Authors
  1. Jameson K. Hirsch
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  2. Jon R. Webb
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  3. Loren L. Toussaint
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Correspondence to Jameson K. Hirsch .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, Flinders University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

    Lydia Woodyatt

  2. Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, USA

    Everett L. Worthington, Jr.

  3. School of Psychology, Flinders University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

    Michael Wenzel

  4. San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California, USA

    Brandon J. Griffin

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Hirsch, J.K., Webb, J.R., Toussaint, L.L. (2017). Self-Forgiveness, Self-Harm, and Suicidal Behavior: Understanding the Role of Forgiving the Self in the Act of Hurting One’s Self. In: Woodyatt, L., Worthington, Jr., E., Wenzel, M., Griffin, B. (eds) Handbook of the Psychology of Self-Forgiveness. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60573-9_18

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