Self-Forgiveness Moderates the Effects of Depression on Suicidality

Objective: Not all depressive individuals are suicidal. An increasing body of studies has examined forgiveness, especially self-forgiveness, as a protective factor of suicide based on that suicide is often accompanied by negative self-perceptions. However, less has been studied on how different subtypes of forgiveness (i.e., forgiveness-of-self, forgiveness-of-others and forgiveness-of-situations) could alleviate the effects of depression on suicide. Hence, this study examined forgiveness as a moderator of depression and suicidality. Methods: 305 participants, consisted of 87 males and 218 females, were included in the study. The mean age was 41.05 (SD: 14.48; range: 19–80). Depression, anxiety, and forgiveness were measured through self-report questionnaires, and suicidal risk was measured through a structuralized interview. Moderations were examined through hierarchical regression analyses. Results: Depression positively correlated with suicidality. Results of the hierarchical regression analysis indicated forgiveness as a moderator of depression on suicidality. Further analysis indicated only forgiveness-of-self as a significant moderator; the effects of forgiveness-of-others and forgiveness-of-situation were not significant. Conclusion: These findings suggest that forgiveness-of-self is essential in reducing of the effects of depression on suicidality. It is suggested that self-acceptance and the promotion of self-forgiveness should be considered as an important factor when developing suicide prevention strategies.