Transgression Narrative Test of Forgiveness (TNTF)

Abstract

The Transgression Narrative Test of Forgiveness (TNTF) is a specialized psychological scale designed to measure an individual’s dispositional tendency toward forgiveness. Developed by Berry, Worthington, Parrott, O’Connor, and Wade (2001), the instrument utilizes a scenario-based methodology where respondents evaluate their likelihood of forgiving a transgressor across five distinct, hypothetical narrative situations. The TNTF aims to capture individual differences in the stable personality trait of Dispositional Forgivingness, moving beyond state-based measures of forgiveness related to specific, singular events.

The scale provides researchers with a robust tool to assess how readily an individual forgives others, regardless of the severity or context of the offense, making it valuable for research in social, personality, and clinical psychology regarding interpersonal reconciliation and conflict resolution.

Keywords

Forgiveness, Dispositional Forgivingness, Transgression, Narrative Test, Scenario-based assessment, Psychometrics, Interpersonal conflict, Trait measure

Authors

Berry, Jack W., Worthington, E. L., Parrott, Les, O’Connor, Lynn E., Wade Nathaniel G.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Transgression Narrative Test of Forgiveness (TNTF) is the measurement of Dispositional Forgivingness—the stable, enduring propensity of an individual to forgive others following an interpersonal offense. Unlike measures that focus on forgiveness related to a specific recent event, the TNTF uses a series of five standardized, hypothetical vignettes that vary in the nature and severity of the transgression.

By presenting diverse scenarios, the TNTF attempts to minimize contextual bias and provide a clearer assessment of the participant’s general tendency to forgive across different relational contexts (e.g., acquaintance, close friend, family member) and types of harm (e.g., academic cheating, physical harm, career disruption). This approach allows researchers to study forgiveness as a consistent personality trait that influences behavior across various life situations.

Construct

The TNTF specifically measures Dispositional Forgivingness. This construct is defined as a general personality trait reflecting individual differences in the readiness or inclination to forgive others following perceived offenses. This disposition is considered distinct from state forgiveness, which describes the emotional and motivational transformation that occurs after a specific offense directed at a specific person.

The theoretical underpinnings of the TNTF suggest that individuals high in this disposition generally exhibit lower levels of unforgiving motivation (e.g., avoidance, revenge) and higher levels of positive, benevolent motivation toward the transgressor, regardless of the immediate context. Measuring this stable trait is crucial for understanding long-term coping mechanisms and relationship maintenance.

Validity

The original development paper by Berry et al. (2001) focused extensively on establishing the Construct Validity of the TNTF. Initial validation efforts demonstrated that the scale successfully measures the intended construct of dispositional forgivingness.

• Convergent Validity: The TNTF scores were expected to correlate positively with other established measures of forgiveness, such as the Trait Forgivingness Scale. High correlations support the idea that the TNTF is measuring a similar underlying construct.
• Discriminant Validity: Scores typically show low or moderate correlations with measures of unrelated constructs, such as general personality factors (e.g., the Big Five) or social desirability, confirming that the TNTF is measuring forgiveness specifically, not just general positive adjustment.
• Criterion Validity: Research, including studies by Brown (2003), has linked TNTF scores to relevant outcomes, such as lower levels of depression and higher levels of psychological well-being, demonstrating its predictive utility in mental health research.

Reliability

Reliability refers to the consistency of the scale’s measurement. Although the TNTF uses only five items, its reliability is typically assessed through internal consistency measures.

Studies utilizing the TNTF, including the initial development phase, have reported acceptable to good internal consistency, typically showing Cronbach’s alpha values in the range of .70 to .80. This level of consistency suggests that the five narrative items, while distinct in their scenarios, function cohesively to measure the single underlying construct of dispositional forgivingness.

Factor Analysis

The development of the TNTF was based on the premise that Dispositional Forgivingness is a unitary construct. Factor analysis performed during the validation phase (Berry et al., 2001) typically supports a single-factor structure.

This single-factor model confirms that responses across the five varied transgression narratives—which range from minor neglect (missed deadline) to severe personal violation (physical assault)—load onto one common dimension, which is the general tendency to forgive the transgressor. This structure reinforces the use of a total composite score to represent the individual’s overall dispositional forgivingness.

Instrument

Test Type: Scenario-based Self-report Psychological scale

Format: Five narrative vignettes followed by a 5-point Likert scale response.

Language Available: English (Original)

Population Group: General adult population and college samples (initially used in student populations).

Age Group: Adolescents (18+) and Adults.

Population Details: Suitable for individuals who can read and comprehend complex hypothetical scenarios involving interpersonal transgression and resulting emotional conflict.

Test Methodology: Participants read five detailed situations where they are the victim of a transgression. They are instructed to imagine the situation has happened to them and then use the 5-point scale to indicate how likely they would be to forgive the person responsible.

Keywords

Personality assessment, Social psychology, Psychological measurement, Scenario vignette, Forgiveness trait, Interpersonal relations, Academic research

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Not provided in source content (Affiliation is Virginia Commonwealth University based on email domain).

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The TNTF was published in 2001. As an academic instrument published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, it is generally available for use in non-commercial academic research, though researchers should always seek permission from the primary author (Berry) or the journal publisher (SAGE) for specific uses.

The full paper describing the development and validation of the instrument can be found at psp.sagepub.com/content/27/10/1277.abstract. The instrument is also featured in various academic theses and dissertations. The original PDF referenced in the source content, which contains further details on the use of the scale, can be downloaded here: http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-05082012-210125/unrestricted/Law_MaryK_D_2012.pdf.

Reference’s

• Berry, Jack W., Worthington, E. L., Parrott, Les, O’Connor, Lynn E., Wade Nathaniel G. (2001). Dispositional Forgivingness: Development and Construct Validity of the Transgression Narrative Test of Forgivingness (TNTF). Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27(10); 1277-1290.
• Brown, R. P. (2003). Measuring individual differences in the tendency to forgive: Construct validity and links with depression. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 29(6), 759-771.

Items of the Transgression Narrative Test of Forgiveness (TNTF)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Directions: Below are a number of situations in which people might find themselves. People respond in different ways to these situations in terms of what things they will forgive. We would like you to read each situation and imagine it has happened to you. Then we would like you to use the scale below to indicate how you think you would respond to the situation:

1. Someone you occasionally see in a class has a paper due at the end of the week. You have already completed the paper for the class and this person says he or she is under a lot of time pressure and asks you to lend him or her your paper for some ideas. You agree‚ and this person simply retypes the paper and hands it in. The professor recognizes the paper‚ calls both of you to her office‚ scolds you‚ and says you are lucky she doesn’t put you both on academic probation. Imagine yourself in such a situation and mark how likely you are to forgive the person who borrowed your paper.
2. A fairly close friend tells you that he or she needs some extra money for an upcoming holiday. You know a married couple who needs a babysitter for their 3-year-old for a couple of nights and you recommend your friend. Your friend is grateful and takes the job. On the first night‚ the child gets out of bed and‚ while your friend has fallen asleep watching television‚ drinks cleaning fluid from beneath the kitchen sink. The child is taken by an ambulance to the hospital and stays there for 2 days for observation and treatment. The married couple will not speak to you. Imagine yourself in such a situation and mark how likely you are to forgive your friend.
3. A friend offers to drop off a job application for you at the post office by the deadline for submission. A week later‚ you get a letter from the potential employer saying that your application could not be considered because it was postmarked after the deadline and they had a very strict policy about this. Your friend said that he or she met an old friend‚ went to lunch‚ and lost track of time. When he or she remembered the package‚ it was close to closing time at the post office and he or she would have to have rushed frantically to get there; he or she decided that deadlines usually aren’t that strictly enforced so he or she waited until the next morning to deliver the package. Imagine yourself in such a situation and mark how likely you are to forgive your friend for not delivering the application on time.
4. You just started a new job and it turns out that a classmate from high school works there‚ too. You think this is great; now you don’t feel like such a stranger. Even though the classmate wasn’t part of your crowd‚ there’s at least a face you recognize. You two hit it off right away and talk about old times. A few weeks later‚ you are having lunch in the cafeteria and you overhear several of your coworkers‚ who do not realize you are nearby‚ talking about you and laughing; one even sounds snide and hostile toward you. You discover that your old classmate has told them about something you did back in school that you are deeply ashamed of and did not want anyone to know about. Imagine yourself in such a situation and mark how likely you are to forgive your old classmate for telling others your secret.
5. A distant cousin you haven’t seen since childhood calls you one day and asks if he can stay with you while he looks for work and an apartment. You say it will be fine. He asks you to pick him up from the bus station that night and you do so. Your cousin is just like you fondly remember him; you reminisce for several hours. The next morning you give him some advice on job and apartment hunting in the area‚ then you go about your own business. That night you come home and witness an angry argument in front of your residence between your cousin and a neighbor. Your cousin is obviously very drunk‚ cursing‚ and out of control. You ask what’s happening and without really taking the time to recognize you‚ your cousin throws a bottle at you‚ cutting the side of your head. The police arrive and‚ with some scuffling‚ take your cousin away and take you to the emergency room where you have stitches put on your cut. The next afternoon‚ your cousin calls from the police station. He says he is really sorry about the whole scene and that it was not like him but he was upset about being turned down for three jobs that day. Imagine yourself in such a situation and mark how likely you are to forgive your cousin.

1= definitely not forgive‚ 2 = not likely to forgive‚ 3 = just as likely to forgive as not‚ 4 = likely to forgive‚ and 5 = definitely forgive.