Self-Forgiveness Among Incarcerated Individuals in Ghana: Relations With Shame- and Guilt-Proneness

• Published in: International journal of offender therapy and comparative criminology Vol. 65; no. 5; pp. 558 - 570
• Main Authors: Osei-Tutu, Annabella, Cowden, Richard G., Kwakye-Nuako, Charlotte O., Gadze, Jeremiah, Oppong, Seth, Worthington, Everett L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.04.2021; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Emotions; Forgiveness; Guilt; Imprisonment; Males; Men; Offenses; Prisoners; Prisons; Prone; Rehabilitation; Rehabilitation of criminals; Shame; guilt-proneness; offender; inmate; Africa; Ghana; shame-proneness; prison; self-forgiveness
• ISSN: 0306-624X; 1552-6933
• DOI: 10.1177/0306624X20914496

Research on the forgiveness of self has largely focused on less severe, more common types of offenses among samples within developed westernized nations. In this brief report of a study within a developing nation in Africa, applications of self-forgiveness are extended to incarcerated people. The sample comprised N = 310 males (83.87%) and females (16.13%) who were incarcerated in a medium-security Ghanaian prison (Mage = 39.35, SDage = 13.28). Participants completed measures of self-forgiveness, shame-proneness, and guilt-proneness. Prison records were examined for criminal history details. We hypothesized that self-forgiveness would correlate negatively with shame-proneness and positively with guilt-proneness. We tentatively hypothesized that this association would be moderated by offense type. Self-forgiveness correlated with both shame- and guilt-proneness in the hypothesized direction. However, neither association was moderated by type of offense. The findings offer further evidence on the salience of self-conscious emotions in forgiving oneself, particularly among incarcerated offender populations. We discuss the implications of the findings for enhancing offender rehabilitation initiatives.