Effectiveness of a Self-Directed REACH Forgiveness Intervention Among Christian War Survivors in Colombia: A Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial

The REACH Forgiveness intervention has been shown to promote forgiveness. However, most of the studies have involved college students. Whereas studies have shown that Christian-accommodated REACH Forgiveness has been effective with Christians, few studies have examined whether a secular version of REACH Forgiveness might promote forgiveness for Christians, investigated outcomes other than forgiveness and depression, or examined over 100 participants. Using a randomized wait-list control design, we administered a brief (nominal 2-3 hr) REACH Forgiveness do-it-yourself workbook to N = 374 adult Colombian war survivors who self-identified as Christian. After completing the baseline assessment at Time 1, participants were randomly assigned to either an immediate treatment condition (n = 176) or a wait-list control condition (n = 198). The immediate treatment condition was assigned the forgiveness workbook for completion during a 2-week period. After the intervention period, both conditions completed the Time 2 assessment. The results of the primary analysis supported improvements in state and trait forgiveness, perceived posttraumatic growth, spiritual growth, and sleep quality among participants in the immediate treatment condition. The findings suggest that a brief secular forgiveness workbook has the potential to promote whole-person functioning among Christians who have been affected by the civil war within Colombia.