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; Mage = 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.

This article explores the development of forgiveness and other-focused love and examines the role of spirituality in the relationship between forgiveness and love: (a) Do forgiveness and love develop together? (b) Does love or forgiveness predict the other at a later time? (c) Does one’s spirituality moderate the relationship between forgiveness and love? A total of 47 participants from a large Christian university in Central Virginia filled out measures of compassionate love, forgiveness, and dedication to God at Time 1 (T1) and measures of love and forgiveness after 4 weeks at Time 2 (T2). Findings showed that those who gained the most in forgiveness began low in both forgiveness and love. While love at T1 did not predict forgiveness at T1 or T2, forgiveness at T1 positively predicted love at T2 (r = .36, p < .05), indicating that forgiveness temporally preceded love. However, the relationship between the two no longer existed after controlling for love at T1. The participants’ dedication to God at T1 did not moderate the relationship between forgiveness and love but further explained love at T2. It may be worthwhile to examine the effect of forgiveness interventions on increasing other-focused love.

This research examines the subjective experiences of 10–11-year-old students participating in a social-emotional Education Program on Forgiveness and Agape Love (EPFAL) in Israel. The EPFAL is designed to help students acquire a social-emotional tool to help them deal with the wrongs, vulnerabilities, and injustices they will likely experience later in life. The EPFAL took place as part of a larger international research project evaluating the program’s effectiveness in enhancing students’ well-being and improving the class environment in Northern Ireland, Taiwan, and Israel. The present article presents findings from qualitative, semi-structured interviews of forty students and thirteen teachers who participated in the study in Israel and field notes of class observations conducted during data collection for the larger study. A thematic analysis of the findings suggests that students found the EPFAL interesting, enjoyable, and valuable. The participants experienced cognitive, emotional, and behavioral changes, including changes in the perception of forgiveness. They experienced a sense of empowerment and openness, reduced anger and empathy, and learned to talk about their feelings. This study demonstrates how emotional, behavioral, and cognitive transformations promoted by the EPFAL affect children’s relationships with friends and family and improve the classroom atmosphere.

This paper first explores the risk factors associated with adolescents’ suicidal thoughts, attempts, and behaviors within different developmental domains and in the environment, using the developmental systems theory (DST). The most frequently identified risk factor for suicide, psychological pain, is examined in terms of its nature, expression, and possible cause. This paper criticizes the current empirical research of suicidal adolescents’ interventions on two issues: (1) lack of concern for fundamental issues in lifespan development and (2) inadequate treatment of the emotional needs resulting from the psychological pain in adolescents. Finally, this paper proposes forgiveness education intervention as targeting the emotional needs, particularly psychological pain, for suicidal adolescents.