Back to Resources

Retributive Justice, Restorative Justice, and Forgiveness: An Experimental Psychophysiology Analysis

Charlotte V. O. Witvliet
Everett L. Worthington, Jr.
Lindsey Root Luna
Amy F. Sato
Thomas E. Ludwig
Julie J. Exline
All your life you’re told forgiveness is for you. But we’re never told why it’s for you. It means you’re working on owning your life.
Shani Tran
Therapist and Founder, The Shani Project
Forgiveness is nothing less than the way we heal the world. We heal the world by healing each and every one of our hearts. The process is simple, but it is not easy.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Back to Resources

Retributive Justice, Restorative Justice, and Forgiveness: An Experimental Psychophysiology Analysis

Charlotte V. O. Witvliet
Everett L. Worthington, Jr.
Lindsey Root Luna
Amy F. Sato
Thomas E. Ludwig
Julie J. Exline
NO. of participants
Date
2008
Type of Evidence
Type of Paper
Primary Empirical Study
Empiricism
open access
Yes
No
sample size

This experiment assessed the emotional self-reports and physiology of justice outcomes and forgiveness responses to a common crime, using a three Justice (retributive, restorative, no justice) × 2 Forgiveness (forgiveness, none) repeated-measures design. Participants (27 males, 29 females) imagined their residence was burglarized, followed by six counterbalanced justice–forgiveness outcomes. Imagery of justice—especially restorative—and forgiveness each reduced unforgiving motivations and negative emotion (anger, fear), and increased prosocial and positive emotion (empathy, gratitude). Imagery of granting forgiveness (versus not) was associated with less heart rate reactivity and better recovery; less negative emotion expression at the brow (corrugator EMG); and less aroused expression at the eye (lower orbicularis oculi EMG when justice was absent). When forgiveness was not imagined, justice-physiology effects emerged: signs of cardiovascular stress (rate pressure products) were lower for retributive versus no justice; and sympathetic nervous system responding (skin conductance) was calmer for restorative versus retributive justice.

Research
North America
Policy Makers
Supporting Research
No items found.
Share this resource

Related Resources