Date

4-18-2025

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)

Chair

Jonathan Green

Keywords

Keywords: forgiveness, infidelity, Robert Enright’s Forgiveness Model, thematic analysis

Disciplines

Counseling

Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to describe the experiences of women who chose to forgive their partner’s infidelity using Robert Enright’s Forgiveness Model. The study explores the motivations for forgiveness after infidelity, focusing on women aged 25–70 in heterosexual relationships from various racial and ethnic origins who have decided to remain with their partners. Extending Robert Enright's Forgiveness Model, this study examines the benefits of forgiveness. The study uses thematic analysis to identify common themes in the participants’ stories, enhancing understanding of their motivations for forgiveness. Semi-structured interviews served as the main method for data collection, offering a secure and private platform for participants to share their firsthand experiences in person. To maintain high ethical research standards, pseudonyms were used to protect the participants’ identities. Transcriptions of the interview recordings will assist in analyzing the factors that influenced each decision to forgive. The research highlights key factors that influence forgiveness, illustrating why participants chose to forgive despite the pain caused by infidelity. The study examines the experiences of these women to understand the four stages of forgiveness as established by Robert Enright, providing insight into the forgiveness path following betrayal. The goal is to understand the forgiving process and make recommendations that will help to improve therapy procedures while also guiding future research on relationship restoration.

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