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Table 2 Forgiveness of others and subsequent health and well-being in mid-life (The Nurses’ Health Study II 2008 supplementary survey to 2011, 2013 or 2015 questionnaire wave, N = 54,703a)

From: Forgiveness of others and subsequent health and well-being in mid-life: a longitudinal study on female nurses

 

Forgiveness of others b

Often vs. Never/seldom

Always/almost always vs. Never/seldom

Health and well-being outcomes

RRc

βd

95% CI

P-value threshold

RRc

βd

95% CI

P-value threshold

Psychosocial Well-being

 Positive affect

 

0.09

0.06, 0.12

<.0026e

 

0.18

0.15, 0.21

<.0026e

 Social integration

 

0.09

0.06, 0.11

<.0026e

 

0.15

0.13, 0.17

<.0026e

Psychological Distress

 Depression diagnosis

0.94

 

0.87, 1.02

 

0.91

 

0.83, 1.00

 

 Depressive symptoms

 

−0.09

−0.12, −0.07

<.0026e

 

−0.16

−0.19, −0.14

<.0026e

 Anxiety symptoms

 

0.00

−0.03, 0.03

  

−0.11

−0.14, −0.08

<.0026e

 Hopelessness

 

−0.10

−0.13, − 0.08

<.0026e

 

− 0.17

− 0.20, − 0.14

<.0026e

 Loneliness

 

− 0.08

− 0.11, − 0.05

<.0026e

 

− 0.12

− 0.15, − 0.09

<.0026e

Health Behaviors

 Heavy drinking

1.00

 

0.84, 1.20

 

1.00

 

0.80, 1.25

 

 Current cigarette smoking

1.00

 

0.83, 1.21

 

0.99

 

0.81, 1.21

 

 Frequent physical activity

1.00

 

0.97, 1.04

 

1.01

 

0.97, 1.05

 

 Preventive healthcare use

1.01

 

0.98, 1.04

 

1.00

 

0.97, 1.04

 

 Dietary quality

 

0.01

−0.01, 0.04

  

0.04

0.01, 0.07

<.01

Physical Health

 All-cause mortality

1.03

 

0.80, 1.32

 

1.17

 

0.90, 1.53

 

 No. of physical health problems

 

0.00

−0.02, 0.02

  

− 0.01

− 0.03, 0.01

 

  Diabetes

0.98

 

0.85, 1.14

 

0.95

 

0.81, 1.12

 

  Stroke

1.12

 

0.81, 1.56

 

1.11

 

0.78, 1.59

 

  Heart Disease

0.86

 

0.57, 1.29

 

1.15

 

0.74, 1.78

 

  Cancer

0.97

 

0.89, 1.06

 

0.99

 

0.90, 1.08

 

  Overweight/obesity

1.01

 

0.97, 1.05

 

0.99

 

0.95, 1.03

 
  1. Abbreviations: RR risk ratio, CI confidence interval
  2. a The full analytic sample was restricted to those who responded to the Nurses’ Health Study II 2008 supplementary survey in which the exposure variable forgiveness was assessed. Multiple imputation was performed to impute missing data on all variables
  3. b A set of generalized estimating equations were used to regress each outcome on forgiveness separately. All models controlled for participants’ age, race, marital status, geographic region, childhood abuse, socioeconomic status (subjective SES, household income, census tract college education rate, and census tract median income), employment status, night shift work schedule, religious service attendance, number of close friends, prior health status or health behaviors (prior depressive symptoms, depression diagnosis, anxiety symptoms, hopelessness, positive affect, dietary quality, body mass index, smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity, preventive healthcare use, postmenopausal status, menopausal hormone therapy use, history of diabetes, heart diseases, stroke, and cancer)
  4. c The effect estimates for the outcomes of heavy drinking, current smoking, mortality, diabetes, heart diseases, stroke and cancer were odds ratio. These outcomes were rare [prevalence< 10%], so the odds ratio would approximate RR. Effect estimates for other dichotomized outcomes were RR
  5. d All continuous outcomes were standardized (mean = 0, standard deviation = 1), and β was the standardized effect size
  6. e p < 0.05 after Bonferroni correction (the p value cutoff for Bonferroni correction is p = 0.05/19 outcomes = 0.0026)