This study examined the impact of forgiveness therapy on battered women in Pakistan. The aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of a forgiveness‐focused intervention in reducing depression, anxiety and anger while increasing forgiveness and hope among the battered women within shelter homes. Thirty participants, aged 25–40, were randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group. Participants were recruited from various cities across Punjab, including Hafizabad, Lahore, Gujrat, Khushab, Sargodha and Gujranwala. The Enright Forgiveness Inventory short form (to assess individual levels of forgiveness), the Center for Epidemiological Studies–Depression Scale (CES‐D), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, Herth Hope Index, and the Clinical Anger Scale were used as instruments to measure the outcomes of the intervention. The Domestic Violence Scale for Intimate Partners was employed for participant screening. The experimental group underwent 15 therapy sessions, while the control group participants were free to approach the experimental group intervener if they needed help. Results indicated that the experimental group experienced significant improvements in depression, anxiety, anger, hope and forgiveness compared to the control group. The study discusses the implications for treatment and acknowledges its limitations as well.

One under‐researched area within corrections is the connection among (a) past adverse events, particularly in the form of injustices against those who now are incarcerated, (b) crimes committed and then (c) healing from the effects of that past adversity of injustice. Might those who have experienced severe injustices against them develop an anger or a hatred that then is displaced onto others, leading to arrest, conviction and imprisonment? This is not to imply that societies condone illegal behaviour but instead to assist in the healing from the adversity so that future crime is reduced. As a first step in this sequence, the study here examined in detail the kinds of injustices suffered by men in a maximum‐security correctional institution (N = 103) compared with men in a medium‐security environment (N = 37) and in the general public (N = 96). Findings indicated differences between those in the general public and those in the two correctional contexts. The latter two groups had (a) a higher severity of injustices against them (rated by a panel of researchers), (b) a more negative current impact that past injustices are having on them (also rated by a panel of researchers), (c) more reports that the injustices contributed to their choices to harm others, (d) more serious types of hurt (such as sexual abuse), (e) a stronger degree of self‐reported hurt and (f) more injustices from family members. Implications for correctional rehabilitation to reduce the negative psychological effects caused by the injustices of others are discussed.