Forgiveness Likelihood Scale
Rye. Dawn. Chad. Brandon. Todd. and Benjamin. 2001
Imagine the scenarios below happened to you. Based on the information provided‚ consider the likelihood that you would choose to forgive the person. Then‚ circle the response that is most true for you.
1. You share something embarrassing about yourself to a friend who promises to keep the information confidential. However‚ the friend breaks his/her promise and proceeds to tell several people. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your friend?
2. One of your friends starts a nasty rumor about you that is not true. As a result‚ people begin treating you worse than they have in the past. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your friend?
3. Your significant other has just broken up with you‚ leaving you hurt and confused. You learn that the reason for the break up is that your significant other started dating a good friend of yours. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your significant other?
4. A family member humiliates you in front of others by sharing a story about you that you did not want anyone to know. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive the family member?
5. Your significant other has a “one night stand” and becomes sexually involved with someone else. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your significant other?
6. Your friend has been talking about you behind your back. When you confront this person‚ he/she denies it‚ even though you know that he/she is lying. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your friend?
7. A friend borrows your most valued possession‚ and then loses it. The friend refuses to replace it. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your friend?
8. You tell an acquaintance about a job that you hope to be hired for. Without telling you‚ the acquaintance applies and gets the job for him/herself. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive your acquaintance?
9. A stranger breaks into your house and steals a substantial sum of money from you. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive the stranger?
10. You accept someone’s offer to attend a formal dance. However‚ this person breaks their commitment to take you and goes to the event with someone who they find more attractive. What is the likelihood that you would choose to forgive this person?
This instrument can be found on pages 276-277 of “Evaluation of the Psychometric Properties of Two Forgiveness Scales.”. Available online at: http://pages.uoregon.edu/bolszews/CPforgiveness.pdf
5=Extremely Likely‚ 4=Fairly Likely‚ 3=Somewhat Likely‚ 2=Slightly Likely‚ 1=Not at all likely
Rye‚ Mark S.‚ Dawn M. Loiacono‚ Chad D. Folck‚ Brandon T. Olszewski‚ Todd A. Heim‚ and Benjamin P. Madia. 2001. “Evaluation of the Psychometric Properties of Two Forgiveness Scales.” Current Psychology 20(3):260–277.