Reducing road rage: an application of the dissonance-attribution model of interpersonal forgiveness

Recent research (Takaku, 2001: Takaku. Weiner, & Ohbuchi, 2001) tested and supported the hypothesis that injured parties' motivation to forgive their wrong-doers could be enhanced through inducing hypocrisy-dissonance by making the injured parties aware of their own past wrongdoing. The present study tested and supported the model's applicability to people's road-rage experiences by showing that individuals who were aware of their own past reckless driving generated more hypocrisy-induced dissonance, more positive attributions, and less negative emotional reactions than individuals who were not aware of their own past reckless driving. Implications for future research and possible applications of the model in reducing road rage are discussed.