Emerging adults are at risk for problematic drinking. Forgiveness, a construct shared by religion/spirituality and positive psychology, is associated with fewer symptoms of psychological distress and lower levels of problematic drinking. According to theoretical modeling developed regarding the Spirituality-Forgiveness-Addiction-Recovery Association (SFARA Model), psychological distress is likely to play a role in the relationship between multiple dimensions of forgiveness and better outcomes related to addictive behavior. We hypothesized that forgiveness of: self (FS), others (FO), and uncontrollable situations (FSit) would each be associated with fewer alcohol-related problems (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) – items 4 through 10). Also, that fewer symptoms of psychological distress [depression, anxiety, stress, and psychache (i.e., psychological pain)] would play a mediating role. Our U.S. sample of 602 emerging adult hazardous drinkers (age: 18-25) scored > 3 (females) and > 4 (males) on the AUDIT – Consumption subscale (items 1 through 3; AUDIT-C). Hayes’ PROCESS macro (model 4) was used to assess the parallel mediation effects of the four aspects of psychological distress (Full Model R2 = .21, p < .0001; R2Δ = .12). Regarding indirect effects, FS and FSit each operated through lower levels of each of anxiety and psychache in association with fewer alcohol-related problems among emerging adult hazardous drinkers. No indirect effects were observed in the context of FO, depression, or stress. Our findings suggest that when forgiveness and psychological distress are relevant among emerging adult hazardous drinkers, clinicians would do well to focus on particular rather than general aspects of each.
Forgiveness and Alcohol Problems as Mediated by Psychological Distress among a U.S. Sample of Emerging Adult Hazardous Drinkers