frequently been described as a bonding peptide. Recent research, however, interprets it more as attentiveness to
relational cues ( Kemp & Gaustella, 2011 ).
Location
RIAs and EIAs to measure cortisol and oxytocin can be accessed through such companies as Diagnostic
Products Corporation and Siemens Medical Solution Diagnostics ( www.medical.siemens.com ).
Results and Comments
Chemical measures have been shown to be psychometrically sound measures of stress and distress in their
own right, but are not necessarily accepted measures of forgiveness. These measures are objective, observable,
and transcend language, giving insight into the physical processes that might be associated with forgiveness, but
they require more than a handful of studies, each of which testing only a few participants, to be considered psy-
chometrically supported measures of forgiveness.
Peripheral Physiological Measures
(e.g., Lawler et al., 2003; Witvliet, Knoll, Hinman, & DeYoung, 2010 ).
Variable
Investigations of both state and trait forgiveness have incorporated a range of physiological measures, includ-
ing autonomic nervous system indicators and facial electromyography to assess expressions at different muscle
regions. Physiological measures may be considered indirect measures of how forgiveness-related responses are
embodied. Forgiveness has often been found to down-regulate negative and aroused emotion, with concomitant
physiological changes.
Description
Autonomic indicators of unforgiveness or forgiveness have included heart rate and blood pressure.
Assessments of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system have measured electrodermal (i.e., skin
conductance) indicators. Measurement of the parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS) has focused on heart
rate variability (HRV). Facial electromyographic (EMG) measures have focused especially on muscle activity at
the corrugator (above the brow), the orbicularis oculi (under the eye), the zygomatic (cheek), and frontalis
(forehead) regions.
The first experimental assessment of forgiveness-related responses incorporating measures of emotion and
peripheral indicators was conducted by Witvliet et al. (2001) . Participants were asked to think of a person they
blamed for offending them. Next, they systematically engaged four different responses to that offender that incor-
porated either forgiving or unforgiving imagery, in counterbalanced orders. Four measures of autonomic arousal
were collected: including: (1) facial EMG; (2) skin conductance; (3) mean arterial blood pressure; and (4) heart
rate. These were measured at multiple trials per condition. Each trial had a pre-trial baseline, imagery, and recov-
ery phase. During the unforgiving imagery, heart rate, blood pressure, and skin conductance, and EMG activity
showed more reactivity than the forgiving imagery conditions.
Recently, PSNS activity has been assessed through measuring HRV. It was assessed with the high frequency
component derived through spectral analysis. In two experimental paradigms, compassionate reappraisal
prompted forgiveness and kept HRV at baseline levels, whereas offence rumination prompted significant reduc-
tions in PSNS activity ( Witvliet et al., 2010; Witvliet, DeYoung, Hofelich, & DeYoung, 2011 ).
In another program of research, Lawler-Row and colleagues have used peripheral physiological measures to
study forgiveness. Lawler et al. (2003) employed an experimental stress-reactivity paradigm. Participants were
asked to recall a time when they were deeply hurt by someone close to them. Participants were interviewed
about the hurt and recounted in detail what had happened. They were asked how long ago the offence occurred,
what feelings they had at the time, whether they expressed these feelings, and why they thought the offender
acted in the way he or she did. Peripheral measures included blood pressure, heart rate, facial EMG activity, and
electrodermal activity. Lawler et al. found that the most consistent peripheral correlates of forgiveness were
related to cardiovascular function; however, the exact magnitude of the effects and the connections to forgiveness
showed variability across cardiovascular outcomes. Blood pressure seemed most consistently related to forgiving,
as compared to heart rate and other peripheral measures.488 17. MEASURES OF FORGIVENESS
IV. INTERPERSONAL STYLES