This study aims to develop a Christian forgiveness counseling program for Chinese participants who have studied in Korea and to conduct an in-depth analysis of its effectiveness. The program integrates Timothy Keller's forgiveness theory (vertical for...
This study aims to develop a Christian forgiveness counseling program for Chinese participants who have studied in Korea and to conduct an in-depth analysis of its effectiveness. The program integrates Timothy Keller's forgiveness theory (vertical forgiveness, internal forgiveness, horizontal forgiveness) with Kyung Seung Ahn's forgiveness theory (valuation, respect, compensation nullification, trust building, reconciliation), and is structured over eight group counseling sessions.
The counseling program differentiates between participants who remained in Korea after graduation and those who returned to China taking into account the unique characteristics of each group.
The study utilized qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze the process through which participants experienced inner peace and improvement in interpersonal relationships through forgiveness. The results demonstrated significant improvements in emotional regulation and communication skills as well as more proactive dialogue and reconciliation-oriented attitudes in conflict situations. Participants who remained in Korea experienced strengthened trust and solidarity within their communities along with a greater sense of belonging to church communities, while the group returning home showed positive effects on
family and community relationship restoration and psychological stability.
Consequently, this group counseling program proved to be a an effective, culturally tailored Christian counseling model reflecting the cultural and social characteristics of Chinese individuals with Korean study-abroad experience, demonstrating meaningful psychosocial efficacy.
This study has meaningful implications for multicultural and Christian counseling fields and could serve as foundational data for fostering healthy emotions and interpersonal relationships among study-abroad Chinese individuals and multicultural groups in the future.