Aja Green

UWRT 1103
18 March 2015
Research Summary 1
Wohl, M. J. A., and A. L. Mcgrath. "The Perception of Time Heals All Wounds: Temporal
Distance Affects Willingness to Forgive Following an Interpersonal Transgression."
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 33.7 (2007): 1023-035. Web.

Research has shown that forgiveness comes more easily to those who have had time to separate
themselves from the person who has hurt them. Wohl, a professor at Carlton University, explains
throughout this article how time has such a profound effect on harm that has been inflicted upon
a person. He conveys that the more an individual distances oneself from the person who has
caused the harm, the more likely he or she is to forgive that person. Interpersonal relationships
are foundations of happiness, but can also be the source of emotional pain. Whenever a person is
emotionally hurt by a friend, he or she is likely to feel resentment towards that person; in turn,
causing the relationship to be unhealthier. Wohl and McGrath conducted experiments to observe
the effect of time perception on forgiveness. In the first experiment, the professors studied
whether or not the amount of time influenced the willingness to forgive. In the second
experiment, individuals were asked to imagine themselves in a particular situation. TI this
experiment, the harmful event was manipulated to feel either close or far away from the effected
person. In experiment 3, people were asked to recall a recent harmful event. The results of these
experiments proved that participants in the subjectively distant condition perceived the
transgression as being more removed in time. Wohl and McGrath concluded that it is necessary
to distance oneself from the harmful person and or harm itself in order for forgiveness to be

initiated. This article relates to my inquiry question because I am inquiring if in fact time really
does heal all wounds.