Expanding the cross-cultural validity of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory short form

This research assessed the cross-cultural validity and internal consistency of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory short form (EFI-30). A total of 1677 people across four countries (United States, the Philippines, China and Saudi Arabia) participated in the study. Data analysis relied on multigroup confirmatory factor analysis and assessments of internal consistency. The results indicated that the EFI-30 has the same structure and factor loadings in the four countries and that internal consistency for the EFI-30 factors was >0.80 in the four countries. The discrimination values suggest that the instrument can differentiate people with different levels of forgiveness. The analyses in this study indicate that the EFI-30 is a valid and reliable assessment of cognition, behaviour and affect related to forgiveness in the United States, the Philippines, China and Saudi Arabia. Clinicians working in these countries can confidently use this shorter version of the EFI to measure forgiveness.

Motivations for Forgiving an Offender with Practical Implications for Those in the Helping Professions: A Qualitative Study

While the forgiveness literature is rapidly growing, little attention has been paid to the general public's motivations for forgiving. Using a qualitative approach, this study examined 100 participants' stated reasons for forgiving. The following seven themes have emerged: (1) forgiveness is the key to inner peace, (2) relationships matter, (3) forgiveness is conditional, (4) they forgive because of love/concern for the other in the human community, (5) forgiveness is a (moral and religious) duty, (6) they forgive for the sake of others, and (7) they forgive for growth. When considering motivations for forgiveness, participants tended to focus on what they could restore or gain as a consequence of forgiving, supporting the findings of past studies. However, some notable differences were also found when questions were asked in different ways. Major findings, implications for those in the helping professions, and limitations and future directions are discussed.

A meta-analysis of forgiveness education interventions' effects on forgiveness and anger in children and adolescents

Forgiveness education interventions instruct children and adolescents in understanding forgiveness and its role in healthy relationships. In this meta‐analytic review, 20 studies involving 1472 youth (51% female; M_age = 11.66) from 10 countries (studies: 40% North American, 25% East Asian, 20% Middle Eastern, 15% European) were retrieved to determine forgiveness education interventions’ effects on youth outcomes. Hedges’ g and confidence intervals (CIs) were used to assess treatment effects. Findings suggest that forgiveness education interventions have a significant positive effect on forgiveness (g = 0.54, 95% CI [0.36, 0.73]) and anger (g = 0.29, 95% CI [0.11, 0.47]). Results lend support to the idea that children and adolescents who experience hurt from the unjust actions of others may benefit from learning about the process of forgiveness.

Integrating mindfulness and connection practices into preservice teacher education results in durable automatic race bias reductions

Automatic race bias, which is the tendency to associate positive attributes more quickly with White as compared to Black faces, reflects enculturation processes linked to inequitable teaching behaviors. In sample of undergraduate preservice teachers (N = 88), we examined whether a novel mindfulness and connection practice intervention without anti-bias content incorporated into undergraduate teacher education would result in reduced automatic race bias favoring White faces. Random assignment to the intervention predicted significantly reduced race preference for White child faces immediately after the intervention. These significant reductions persisted at the 6-month follow-up, which are the most durable reductions in automatic race bias reported to date in adults. Data from semi-structured interviews indicated that the intervention enhanced self-awareness and self-regulation while reducing automatic responding among preservice teachers. These qualities are instrumental to adaptive teaching and putative mechanisms for reducing automatic race bias. The potential value of integrating mindfulness and connection practices into undergraduate preservice teacher education is discussed.

Evaluation of the effectiveness and satisfaction of the Learning to Forgive Program for the prevention of bullying

Introduction.  Two pioneering studies in Spain are presented on the Learning to Forgive program inspired by the research of Robert Enright and his team, pioneers in the education of forgiveness. Study 1 aims to analyze whether teacher training in the Learning to Forgive Program increases their knowledge of forgiveness and Study 2 evaluates the satisfaction of the program for teenagers. Method.  In Study 1, the sample consisted of 88 primary and secondary school teachers, distributed in an experimental group (n = 63) and a control group (n = 25), belonging to 11 educational centers, and in Study 2 the sample consisted of 153 students belonging to 4 educational centers.  Results. In Study 1, statistically significant improvements were found in the forgiveness group regarding their knowledge of forgiveness and marginally significant in emotional forgiveness compared to the control group. In Study 2 participants noted, among other data, high satisfaction with the program and that it had helped them forgive in a remarkable way. Discussion and Conclusion.  In line with other studies, it is recommended to incorporate education in forgiveness into bullying prevention programs. 

Forgiveness therapy in a maximum-security correctional institution: A randomized clinical trial

OBJECTIVE

Forgiveness Therapy is proposed as a novel approach to rehabilitation for men in a maximum-security correctional institution to alleviate psychological compromises.

METHOD

In a two-tiered study, volunteer participants within a correctional institution (N = 103) were asked to report past experiences of abuse and unjust treatment prior to their first crime and were measured on anger, anxiety, depression, hope and forgiveness. Twenty four of the most clinically compromised participants were selected from this initial assessment, with pairs first matched on certain characteristics and then randomly assigned to either experimental or control group interventions followed by a cross-over design (N = 9 in each group at the study's end). Experimental participants received 24 weeks of Forgiveness Therapy. Control group participants received 24 weeks of an alternative treatment followed by Forgiveness Therapy. Dependent variables included anger, anxiety, depression, forgiveness, hope, self-esteem and empathy.

RESULTS

Ninety percent of 103 participants reported moderate to severe abuse in childhood or adolescence. Data showed an inverse relationship between forgiveness and anger, anxiety and depression. In the Forgiveness Therapy, anger, anxiety, depression, empathy and forgiveness were statistically significant favouring both experimental groups. These results remained at the 6-month follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS

Forgiveness Therapy is shown to be effective for correctional rehabilitation in healing clinical psychological compromise and in promoting positive psychological well-being in men within a maximum-security facility.

A randomized controlled trial of a forgiveness intervention program with female acid attack survivors in Pakistan

Despite the traumatic effects of acid violence on its victims, treatment options are very limited. The present study was aimed at examining the efficacy of a forgiveness intervention with female survivors of acid attack violence in Pakistan. Female acid attack victims in Pakistan were randomized to either a forgiveness group (n = 8) or a treatment-as-usual (TAU; n = 8) control group. The forgiveness group received twice-a-week forgiveness sessions for 4 months, whereas the TAU group either received typical psychological treatment sessions for acid attack victims or no treatment. All participants were assessed on their levels of forgiveness, anger, anxiety, depression, and hope four times prior to the 4-month intervention period, twice after the intervention period, and once at the 1-year follow-up. Posttreatment, the forgiveness intervention group showed greater improvement in hope, anger, anxiety, and depression when compared with the TAU group. Upon further examinations, both groups improved on forgiveness from pretreatment to posttreatment, but the forgiveness group had a higher baseline. From pretreatment to the 12-month follow-up, the forgiveness group, when compared with the TAU group, showed greater improvement in all areas except for depression. This is the first study that examined the effects of a forgiveness intervention for acid attack victims in Pakistan. Results showing the improvement posttreatment as well as over a 1-year period posttreatment are encouraging.

Trauma and healing in the underserved populations of homelessness and corrections: Forgiveness Therapy as an added component to intervention

The purpose of this article is to begin applying the principles of the psychology of forgiveness to people who are without homes and people who are in prisons. A review of the literature shows trauma for both groups. When the trauma is caused by unjust treatment by others, then excessive anger can result, compromising one's psychological and physical health. We review the interventions that have been offered for those without homes and the imprisoned to examine which existing programmes address such anger. Forgiveness Therapy, although untried in these two settings, may be one beneficial approach for substantially reducing unhealthy anger. Forgiveness interventions have shown a cause-and-effect relationship between learning to forgive and overcoming psychological compromise such as strong resentment and clinical levels of anxiety and depression. The literature review here suggests that forgiveness therapy for those without homes and the imprisoned may be a new and important consideration for ameliorating anger and aiding in a changed life pattern.

A meta-analysis of the association between forgiveness of others and physical health

OBJECTIVE

This meta-analysis tested the relation between forgiveness of others and physical health (PH) with age, gender, race, education level, employment status, sample type, research design, type of PH variables, and publication status as the potential moderators.

DESIGN

Eligible studies had participants with or without physical or mental health problems and had quantitative data on forgiveness of others and PH. The random-effects model was used to aggregate Fisher's z effect sizes, which were converted back to correlation coefficients.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

State forgiveness (forgiving an offense or offender) measures, trait forgiveness (a disposition to forgive) measures and physical health measures were included in the meta-analysis.

RESULTS

A hundred and twenty-eight studies (N = 58,531) were retrieved, in which the mean effect sizes showed a significant positive relationship between forgiveness of others and PH (r = 0.14, p < 0.001, 95% CI [0.11, 0.17]). Further, no moderators showed a significant relation between forgiveness of others and PH.

CONCLUSIONS

The positive relation between forgiveness of others and PH was not affected by potential moderators. Because the results are correlational, more forgiveness interventions may be needed to examine the causal effect of the relation between forgiveness of others and PH.

Childhood Victimization, Recent Injustice, Anger, and Forgiveness in a Sample of Imprisoned Male Offenders

The links between childhood victimization, subsequent emotional dysregulation, and insufficient coping skills have been repeatedly documented in the scientific literature. However, there is a gap in the literature regarding the role of forgiveness as a coping strategy and relationships between offense-specific hurt, chronic anger, and early victimization. The goals of our study were (a) to explore how offenders cope with recent unjust treatment, and test the links between type of injustice, hurt experienced due to injustice, and use of forgiveness; (b) to test the links between childhood victimization, hurt, and chronic anger; and (c) to assess the mediating role of chronic anger in relation to hurt and forgiveness. The results reveal that multiplicity and severity of victimization exposure in the prison sample are positively associated with chronic anger, but not with hurt. The type of injustice affects the level of hurt and forgiveness, while chronic anger mediates the link between hurt and forgiveness. To improve coping and promote forgiving, offenders should be helped to identify everyday sources of stress and learn to express vulnerable feelings beneath anger.

A Palliative Care Intervention in Forgiveness Therapy for Elderly Terminally Ill Cancer Patients

Palliative care is now considered an essential part of end-of-life care, yet little research examines the efficacy of interventions addressing the psychological treatment of dying patients. Forgiveness therapy has been shown to be effective in improving psychological well-being and may provide a valuable addition to a terminal cancer patient's overall treatment plan. This study experimentally tested the effectiveness of a four-week forgiveness therapy in improving the quality of life of elderly terminally ill cancer patients. Participants (n=20) were randomly assigned to a forgiveness therapy group or to a wait-list control group, which received forgiveness therapy in the second four-week period. All participants completed instruments measuring forgiveness, hope, quality of life, and anger at pre-test, post-test 1, and post-test 2. The forgiveness therapy group showed greater improvement than the control group, with one-tailed t-tests, on all measures. After receiving forgiveness therapy, participants in both forgiveness treatment conditions demonstrated significant improvements on all measures. The aggregated effect size was large. The four-week forgiveness therapy demonstrated psychological benefits for elderly terminally ill cancer patients and thus may be an appropriate addition to the treatment plan for terminal cancer patients.

Beyond Grief and Survival

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the characteristics of posttraumatic growth arising from losing an immediate family member to suicide in Korea. We used interpretative phenomenological analysis for data collection and analysis and conducted in-depth interviews with 11 participants in Korea to evaluate the positive changes subsequent to the suicide. Participants revealed positive outcomes in response to losing an immediate family member to suicide after suffering the “most unimaginable pain” including (a) “Now I know what the most important thing in life is,” (b) “Warm and intimate relationships matter,” and (c) “Survivors of suicide’s search for meaning.” The implications of these findings and avenues for future research are discussed.

A Psychometric Examination of Rasmussen's Ego Identity Scale

Rasmussen's Ego Identity Scale (EIS) was examined for internal consistency reliability and construct validity. In Study 1, 114 seventh and eleventh grade students were given the EIS, the Marlowe-Crowne social desirability scale, Simmons' Identity Achievement Scale, and Rest's Defining Issues Test of moral development. Although the EIS was significantly related to age, identity, and moral development, its strongest relationship was with social desirability. In Study 2, an item analysis of the Study 1 data and a reworking of the EIS to a 30-item scale reduced the association with social desirability while still maintaining high internal consistency. Study 3 was a replication of the internal consistency findings of Study 2 and an exploration of sex effects which became evident in Study 2. Implications for identity assessment are drawn.

The influence of family unions and parenthood transitions on self-development

The present study discusses the impact of union and parenthood transitions on individuals' self-esteem and sense of mastery development from midadolescence to young adulthood by using multilevel analyses with longitudinal data of 7,339 individuals between ages 15 and 38. The results show that, first, individuals in marital unions show significantly greater rates of growth in self-esteem and sense of mastery, compared with singles. Therefore, entering into marriage provides greater protections to individuals' self-esteem and sense of mastery. Second, the transition to parenthood brings significant decreases in levels and increases in rates of change in self-esteem and sense of mastery among new parents. The degree of the aforementioned changes differs by new parents' gender, union status, and living arrangement with the child at childbirth. Women are influenced more negatively than men. Living with the child at childbirth reduces the degree of decreases in self-esteem and sense of mastery, especially for mothers. In sum, from midadolescence to young adulthood, the development of individuals' self-esteem and sense of mastery is shaped by their union and parenthood transitions. Moreover, the context where these transitions take place, including the type of union and the living arrangement, moderates the degree of the impact. Our findings have important implications for research and practice in promoting the family transition experience.

Case Study of a Survivor of Suicide Who Lost All Family Members Through Parent–Child Collective Suicide

Background: South Korea is characterized by a high percentage of parent–child collective suicide. Aims: This case study explores one individual’s personal experience as an adult survivor of suicide who lost his wife and his only son through parent–child collective suicide in South Korea. Method: The study reports data from a semistructured interview, which were analyzed using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). Results: Two themes were identified through the analysis of the narratives of the survivor. The first theme provides a detailed picture of the survivor’s explanation of why the parent–child collective suicide occurred. The second theme examines how the participant experienced complicated bereavement after his heart-breaking loss of both wife and son. Conclusion: We discuss the importance of support from other people or grief experts for the survivors of suicide who lose family to collective suicide.

A Forgiveness Intervention for Women With Fibromyalgia Who Were Abused in Childhood: A Pilot Study

This pilot study compared the efficacy of a forgiveness intervention with a fibromyalgia (FM) health intervention on women with FM who have experienced emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, and emotional or physical neglect, in childhood by one of their parents. Eleven women with FM between the ages of 21 and 68 were randomized to the forgiveness intervention (n = 5) or the FM health intervention (n = 6), and completed the once-weekly individualized program for 24 weeks. The participants completed measures assessing forgiveness, overall FM health, depression, anger, anxiety, self-esteem, and coping strategies at the pretest, the posttest, and the 12-week follow-up test. They also completed the forgiveness intervention and FM health intervention final tests at the posttest, which assessed their knowledge on forgiveness and FM health. The forgiveness intervention participants had greater improvements in forgiveness (p < .001) and overall FM health (p = .046) from the pretest to the posttest, and in forgiveness (p = .018) and state anger (p = .027) from the pretest to the follow-up test than the FM health intervention participants. Moreover, the forgiveness intervention participants scored higher on the forgiveness final test than the FM health intervention participants (p < .001), and the FM health intervention participants scored higher on the FM health final test than the forgiveness intervention participants (p < .001). The results indicate that the forgiveness intervention was potentially helpful in improving forgiveness and overall FM health, and in decreasing state anger of this particular sample of women with FM.

Self-forgiveness in anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa

This study investigated whether low levels of self-forgiveness were associated with eating disorder symptomatology. Participating women (N = 51) had diagnoses of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or no eating disorder diagnosis. They completed 3 measures of self-forgiveness. Women with eating disorders had lower levels of self-forgiveness compared with control participants. Results suggest that incorporating self-forgiveness interventions into current eating disorder treatments should be evaluated in future research as they might enhance clinical outcomes.

The effects of a forgiveness intervention on patients with coronary artery disease

This research assesses the effects of a psychology of forgiveness pilot study on anger-recall stress induced changes in myocardial perfusion, forgiveness and related variables. Thirty-two patients were administered baseline rest and anger-recall stress imaging studies, and 17 of these participants who demonstrated anger-recall stress induced myocardial perfusion defects (forgiveness group, n = 9; control group, n = 8) were randomly assigned to a series of 10 weekly interpersonal forgiveness or control therapy sessions with a trained psychologist, and underwent additional anger-recall stress myocardial perfusion nuclear imaging studies post-test and at 10-week follow-up. Patients assigned to the forgiveness group showed significantly fewer anger-recall induced myocardial perfusion defects from pre-test to the 10-week follow-up as well as significantly greater gains in forgiveness from pre-test to post-test and from pre-test to follow-up compared to the control group. Forgiveness intervention may be an effective means of reducing anger-induced myocardial ischemia in patients with coronary artery disease.

Belongingness as a Protective Factor Against Loneliness and Potential Depression in a Multicultural Middle School

This study examines belongingness as a strengths-based protective factor. Belongingness is investigated in relationship to the threat of low peer acceptance for loneliness and of high loneliness for depression in adolescents. Data were collected from peers for adolescents’ peer acceptance and from adolescents themselves for other variables. Ratings of peers and self-reported survey data were analyzed together from data collected from 294 eighth-grade students from a culturally and ethnically diverse school. Results indicated belongingness was a significant moderator of the influence of peer acceptance on loneliness and of loneliness on depression. This suggests that belongingness is a potentially important buffer against the negative effects of low peer acceptance and high loneliness. Implications for counseling psychologists working with ethnically diverse adolescents are discussed.

A palliative care intervention in forgiveness therapy for elderly terminally ill cancer patients

Palliative care is now considered an essential part of end-of-life care, yet little research examines the efficacy of interventions addressing the psychological treatment of dying patients. Forgiveness therapy has been shown to be effective in improving psychological well-being and may provide a valuable addition to a terminal cancer patient's overall treatment plan. This study experimentally tested the effectiveness of a four-week forgiveness therapy in improving the quality of life of elderly terminally ill cancer patients. Participants (n = 20) were randomly assigned to a forgiveness therapy group or to a wait-list control group, which received forgiveness therapy in the second four-week period. All participants completed instruments measuring forgiveness, hope, quality of life, and anger at pre-test, post-test 1, and post-test 2. The forgiveness therapy group showed greater improvement than the control group, with one-tailed t-tests, on all measures. After receiving forgiveness therapy, participants in both forgiveness treatment conditions demonstrated significant improvements on all measures. The aggregated effect size was large. The four-week forgiveness therapy demonstrated psychological benefits for elderly terminally ill cancer patients and thus may be an appropriate addition to the treatment plan for terminal cancer patients.

Further validation of the Dutch version of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory

This study examined the reliability, construct validity, and factor pattern of the Dutch version of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory (EFI) in a sample of 731 respondents (heterosexually married adults, 359 males and 372 females) in Belgium. The Cronbach alpha for EFI total (.98) and all its subscales, Positive Affect (PA) (.95), Negative Affect (NA) (.92), Positive Behaviour (PB) (.94), Negative Behaviour (NB) (.94), Positive Cognition (PC) (.95), Negative Cognition (NC) (.93) were high. The construct validity of the scale was measured by a 1-item scale. The 1-item scale proved to be positive, strong and significantly (p < .001) correlated with EFI (.73). Principal components analysis in an Initial Factor Method found a one-factor solution confirming the unidimensional structure of EFI.

The effects of forgiveness therapy on depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress for women after spousal emotional abuse

Emotionally abused women experience negative psychological outcomes long after the abusive spousal relationship has ended. This study compares forgiveness therapy (FT) with an alternative treatment (AT; anger validation, assertiveness, interpersonal skill building) for emotionally abused women who had been permanently separated for 2 or more years (M = 5.00 years, SD = 2.61; n = 10 per group). Participants, who were matched, yoked, and randomized to treatment group, met individually with the intervener. Mean intervention time was 7.95 months (SD = 2.61). The relative efficacy of FT and AT was assessed at p < .05. Participants in FT experienced significantly greater improvement than AT participants in depression, trait anxiety, posttraumatic stress symptoms, self-esteem, forgiveness, environmental mastery, and finding meaning in suffering, with gains maintained at follow-up (M = 8.35 months, SD = 1.53). FT has implications for the long-term recovery of postrelationship emotionally abused women.

The effects of forgiveness therapy on depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress for women after spousal emotional abuse

Emotionally abused women experience negative psychological outcomes long after the abusive spousal relationship has ended. This study compares forgiveness therapy (FT) with an alternative treatment (AT; anger validation, assertiveness, interpersonal skill building) for emotionally abused women who had been permanently separated for 2 or more years (M = 5.00 years, SD = 2.61; n = 10 per group). Participants, who were matched, yoked, and randomized to treatment group, met individually with the intervener. Mean intervention time was 7.95 months (SD = 2.61). The relative efficacy of FT and AT was assessed at p < .05. Participants in FT experienced significantly greater improvement than AT participants in depression, trait anxiety, posttraumatic stress symptoms, self-esteem, forgiveness, environmental mastery, and finding meaning in suffering, with gains maintained at follow-up (M = 8.35 months, SD = 1.53). FT has implications for the long-term recovery of postrelationship emotionally abused women.

Effects of Forgiveness Therapy on Anger, Mood, and Vulnerability to Substance Use Among Inpatient Substance-Dependent Clients

Anger and related emotions have been identified as triggers in substance use. Forgiveness therapy (FT) targets anger, anxiety, and depression as foci of treatment. Fourteen patients with substance dependence from a local residential treatment facility were randomly assigned to and completed either 12 approximately twice-weekly sessions of individual FT or 12 approximately twice-weekly sessions of an alternative individual treatment based on routine drug and alcohol therapy topics. Participants who completed FT had significantly more improvement in total and trait anger, depression, total and trait anxiety, self-esteem, forgiveness, and vulnerability to drug use than did the alternative treatment group. Most benefits of FT remained significant at 4-month follow-up. These results support FT as an efficacious newly developed model for residential drug rehabilitation.

Forgiveness intervention with postabortion men

An intervention designed to foster forgiveness was implemented with postabortion men. Participants were randomly assigned to either the treatment or the control (wait list) condition, which received treatment after a 12-week waiting period. Following treatment, the participants demonstrated a significant gain in forgiveness and significant reductions in anxiety, anger, and grief as compared with controls. Similar significant findings were evident among control participants after they participated in the treatment. Maintenance of psychological benefits among the 1st set of participants was demonstrated at a 3-month follow-up.

Forgiveness intervention with postabortion men

An intervention designed to foster forgiveness was implemented with postabortion men. Participants were randomly assigned to either the treatment or the control (wait list) condition, which received treatment after a 12-week waiting period. Following treatment, the participants demonstrated a significant gain in forgiveness and significant reductions in anxiety, anger, and grief as compared with controls. Similar significant findings were evident among control participants after they participated in the treatment. Maintenance of psychological benefits among the 1st set of participants was demonstrated at a 3-month follow-up.

The development of forgiveness in the context of adolescent friendship conflict in Korea

A developmental pattern of understanding interpersonal forgiveness is proposed and examined with 30 junior high and 30 college students in Seoul, Korea. Three questions are asked: Does the developmental sequence in understanding forgiveness relate to age? Is there a relation between the understanding of forgiveness and the degree of forgiveness offered to one's offending friend? Is there a relation between the way people understand forgiveness and how they go about restoring an actual friendship in conflict? All participants had serious and unfair conflicts with their close friends during the past 5 to 6 months. Results support a developmental sequence in Korea and the observed relation between the sequence and actual friendship restoration strategies. There was at least partial statistical support for the relation between understanding forgiveness and the participants' forgiving behaviour in real life situations. Implications are drawn for the study and implementation of forgiveness in adolescents.

Forgiveness as an intervention goal with incest survivors

An intervention, with forgiveness toward their abuser as the goal, was implemented with 12 female incest survivors. The women, from a midwestern city, were 24 to 54 years old, and all were Caucasian. A yoked, randomized experimental and control group design was used. The participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (receiving the forgiveness intervention immediately) or a waiting-list control group (receiving the intervention when their matched experimental counterpart finished the intervention). Each participant met individually with the intervener once per week. The average length of the intervention for the 12 participants was 14.3 months. A process model of forgiveness was used as the focus of intervention. Dependent variables included forgiveness, self-esteem, hope, psychological depression, and state-trait anxiety scales. After the intervention, the experimental group gained more than the control group in forgiveness and hope and decreased significantly more than the control group in anxiety and depression. When the control group then began the program they showed similar change patterns to the above, as well as in self-esteem improvement.

Forgiveness as an intervention goal with incest survivors

An intervention, with forgiveness toward their abuser as the goal, was implemented with 12 female incest survivors. The women, from a midwestern city, were 24 to 54 years old, and all were Caucasian. A yoked, randomized experimental and control group design was used. The participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (receiving the forgiveness intervention immediately) or a waiting-list control group (receiving the intervention when their matched experimental counterpart finished the intervention). Each participant met individually with the intervener once per week. The average length of the intervention for the 12 participants was 14.3 months. A process model of forgiveness was used as the focus of intervention. Dependent variables included forgiveness, self-esteem, hope, psychological depression, and state-trait anxiety scales. After the intervention, the experimental group gained more than the control group in forgiveness and hope and decreased significantly more than the control group in anxiety and depression. When the control group then began the program they showed similar change patterns to the above, as well as in self-esteem improvement.

The adolescent as forgiver

A social cognitive developmental model of forgiveness is described and tested in two studies, the second being a replication of the first. In study 1, 59 subjects in grades 4, 7, 10, college and in adulthood were given a forgiveness interview that assessed six stages of forgiveness development, Rest's DIT measure of justice development, and a religiosity scale. As predicted, there were strong age trends for forgiveness and justice. Both forgiveness and justice were related but distinct constructs. The more one practiced one's faith, the higher one was in forgiveness stage. Study 2, with 60 subjects, replicated the above findings. The studies give strong evidence that people's understanding of forgiveness develops with age. Implications for adolescent development are drawn.