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Extending and Withholding Forgiveness to Josh Hamilton

Forgiveness plays a prominent role in social interaction yet has received scant attention in the parasocial realm. This research addresses this gap by investigating people extending or declining forgiveness to Major League Baseball player Josh Hamilton after an alcohol relapse. A thematic analysis of 474 postings in a discussion forum on the Texas Rangers official website was conducted. Analysis revealed that fans forgave Hamilton through (a) support; (b) “addiction is hard” narratives; (c) human condition attributions; and (d) justification and that forgiveness was withheld due to perceptions of Hamilton’s character flaws. The results suggest that when athletes transgress and accept responsibility, it facilitates increased similarity with fans who then engage in supportive communication, including forgiveness. Nevertheless, transgressions also may preclude forgiveness as some fans are unwilling to chance recidivism. The study concludes with implications and directions for future research, which include a recommendation that professional athletes accept responsibility for their wrongdoings to cultivate fan support and hasten the image repair process.