The purpose of this study was to investigate psychological mechanism by which anger, empathy, and forgiveness mediate the relationship between perceived childhood trauma and aggressive behaviour. Whether empathy and forgiveness play any role as a medi...
The purpose of this study was to investigate psychological mechanism by which anger, empathy, and forgiveness mediate the relationship between perceived childhood trauma and aggressive behaviour. Whether empathy and forgiveness play any role as a mediator in the process whereby childhood trauma have effect on anger, and anger on aggression, was looked into, by setting and verifying causal structure model. A total of 532 students attending high school in Kyoug-gi province or in Seoul, completed the questionnaire. And an equal number of data was used to verify the structural equation model.
The results are as follows: First, anger and empathy played a partial role in the process of aggression affected (in/directly) by childhood trauma. Second, in the aforementioned process, anger and forgiveness showed mediating effect. The mediating effect of each individual, indirect effect is verified by phantom variable. The result indicated: (a) it is proved that childhood trauma is a variable strongly affecting aggression; (b) anger is identified as a dominant factor causing aggression (affected by childhood trauma); (c) empathy was identified as a mediator of aggression, however, the effect was not larger than that of anger; (d) forgiveness was verified as a mediator of anger and aggression and a plausible variable of suppression; and (e) through testing mediating effect of empathy and forgiveness, developmental level of the test subject was predictable.
The clinical significance in counseling juvenile clients lies in that (a) examination of childhood trauma such as abuse or neglect followed by appropriate treatment, is needed with sufficient handling of their anger; (b) when treating clients their developmental level must be considered sufficiently.