Forgiveness and mental wellbeing: A transnational comparison

Forgiveness and mental wellbeing were investigated amongst British-European and Nigerian-African samples to compare and determine; (a) similarities and differences in dispositional forgiveness levels between the two populations conducted in terms of their general samples, gender, and age. (b) the difference in mental well-being scores between the two samples. Finally, (c) the relationship between forgiveness and mental wellbeing in both groups. The Bolton Forgiveness Scale (BFS) and the Short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale were administered to participants (Nigerian n = 1164, British n = 855). SPSS was used to analyse data; a series of t-test were conducted, Eta squared and Z-value were calculated to determine the magnitude of each significant difference between variables and the magnitude of the difference in the correlation coefficient between variables respectively. Statistically significant results suggested significant differences in the way and manner dispositional forgiveness is conceptualised and practised within one group relative to the other, whereas non-significant results indicated similarities in forgiveness opinions and practises between the two groups. Overall British sample, men, and those aged 36 to 55, reported higher levels of forgiveness than their Nigerian counterparts. However, Nigerians under the age of 35 reported higher levels of forgiveness than their British counterparts, and there was no statistically significant difference between the forgiveness levels of British and Nigerian women. Furthermore, the British total sample, men, and women, all had higher wellbeing scores than their Nigerian counterparts. Forgiveness varies according to culture. The findings of the current study suggest that the individualistic/collectivistic cultural arguments long held by some authors may not adequately explain the differences and similarities in forgiveness conceptualization and practise across cultures. As a result, research may focus on a variety of factors such as educational background, income, socioeconomic level, religion, among others. Second, consistent with previous studies, this research suggests that forgiveness is positively related to mental health and wellbeing. Finally, one of the limitations of this study is its exclusive focus on two countries, namely the United Kingdom and Nigeria. Future research could include more countries with both individualistic and collectivistic societies. This paper, which is the first to examine forgiveness and mental wellbeing in a comparative perspective between British-European and Nigerian-African samples, has made a unique contribution to the forgiveness and mental wellbeing literature and in particular, has provided a solid foundation and resources for future research of a similar nature in Africa, where little or no research had been conducted previously