A Study of Social Injustice and Forgiveness in the Case of North Korean Refugees

Author(s)

Jin Uk ParkFollow

Date

8-2012

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Chair

Fernando Garzon

Primary Subject Area

Sociology, Ethnic and Racial Studies; Religion, General; Psychology, Social; Psychology, Clinical; History, Asia, Australia and Oceania

Keywords

Depression, Forgiveness, North Korean refugees, Religious commitment, Trauma, Unforgiveness

Disciplines

Asian History | Christianity | Counseling Psychology | Practical Theology | Psychology | Race and Ethnicity | Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies | Religion | Social Psychology | Sociology | Sociology of Culture

Recommended Citation

Park, Jin Uk, "A Study of Social Injustice and Forgiveness in the Case of North Korean Refugees" (2012). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 590.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/590

Abstract

The current study evaluated the psychometric utility of Decisional Forgiveness Scale and Emotional Forgiveness Scale for the North Korean refugee population and explored the relationship among social adaptation, religious commitment, unforgiveness, forgiveness style and mental health variables (trauma symptoms and depression) among North Korean refugees. Confirmatory Factor Analyses were conducted to investigate the North Korean version of DFS and EFS with collected data from 269 North Korean refugees. The forgiveness instruments, when modified with appropriate item deletions, could be considered as useful for North Korean refugees. In the Multiple Regression Analysis, four of five predictors (social adaptation, hurt characteristics, forgiveness and unforgiveness) are suggested to indirectly or directly influence mental health for North Korean refugees. Factors of unforgiveness, in particular rumination, were found to be the most predictive variable of trauma and depression symptom.