Dispositional Forgiveness and PTSD Among Iranian Veterans of the 1980–1988 War

Abstract

The relationship between dispositional forgiveness, empathy, and hope, on the one hand, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), on the other hand, was examined among Iranian veterans of the Iran-Iraq 1980–1988 conflict. Participants were administered the Forgivingness Questionnaire (measuring lasting resentment, sensitivity to the circumstances of the offense, and unconditional forgiveness), the Empathy Quotient Scale (assessing cognitive empathy, social skills, and emotional reactivity), the Hope Scale (assessing personal feelings of agency and ability to find pathways), and the Mississippi Scale for Combat-Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. It was found that the higher the PTSD score, the higher the lasting resentment score and the lower all of the other scores, particularly agency and sensitivity to circumstances. The association between forgivingness and PTSD was still significant once empathy and hope levels were controlled for.

KEYWORDS:

• empathy
• forgiveness
• hope
• Iran
• PTSD
• veterans

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We are greatly indebted to Paul C. Sorum, who reviewed an early version of this article and offered many insightful suggestions.

Notes

Note: Age was not significantly associated with any variable.

*p < .0013.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Samaneh Nateghian

Samaneh Nateghian is a clinical psychologist working at the Madaen Hospital in Tehran, Iran. Her research interests center on positive psychology in general and forgiveness in particular. She is also interested in innovative psychotherapies for posttraumatic stress disorder, chronic depression, and general anxiety disorder.

Samad Shirinzadeh Dastgiri

Samad Shirinzadeh Dastgiri is a clinical psychologist working at Tehran University in Iran. His research interests focus on positive psychology, as well as general anxiety disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Etienne Mullet

Etienne Mullet works at the Institute of Advanced Studies in Paris. He has examined intergroup forgiveness and/or reconciliation among people from countries that have been devastated by recent conflicts, such as Angola, Cambodia, Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Rwanda, and Timor Leste.