This study has two purposes: (1) to test the P,;rsonal Feelings Questionnaire--3 (PFQ3), a lengthened, psychometrically improved version of the PFQ2 guilt-proneness measure, for construct validity; and (2) to evaluate hypotheses regarding the relationships between shameand guilt-proneness and nine types of psychopathological symptoms among college undergraduates. Fifty-nine undergraduates (32 w...

Within the field of guilt and shame two competing perspectives have been advanced. The first, the social-adaptive perspective, proposes that guilt is an inherently adaptive emotion and shame is an inherently maladaptive emotion. Thus, those interested in moral character development and psychopathology should work to increase an individual's guilt-proneness and decrease an individual's shame-pro...

Situational antecedents and experiential correlates of shame and guilt in children were examined by having 6–11-year-olds give ratings of the extent to which two types of situations would elicit a protagonist’s feelings of shame and guilt. It was predicted that one type of situation should elicit both shame and guilt, because the protagonist caused harm to another person by behaving incoherentl...

Proneness to self-blaming moral emotions such as shame and guilt is increased in major depressive disorder (MDD), and may play an important role in vulnerability even after symptoms have subsided. Social psychologists have argued that shame-proneness is relevant for depression vulnerability and is distinct from guilt. Shame depends on the imagined critical perception of others, whereas guilt re...

BACKGROUND Prior research has repeatedly shown that alcohol-dependence is associated with interpersonal difficulties. However, guilt and shame, two crucial self-evaluative emotions triggered by the transgression of social norms, have not been explored among alcohol-dependent individuals despite their important role in psychiatric disorders. The present study thus aimed to investigate whether al...

This research examines the notion that guilt, the negative emotion stemming from a failure to meet a self-held standard of behavior, leads to preferences for products enabling self-improvement, even in domains unrelated to the original source of the guilt. Examining consumer responses to real products, this research shows that such effects arise because guilt—by its focus on previous wrongdoing...

Several studies suggest that obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is common among college students. Therefore, identification of factors contributing to the symptoms of this disorder is considered one of the most important issues in the field of education. The purpose of this study is to predict the severity of OCD based on self-focused attention styles and sense of guilt in students. Sample gro...

Following proposals regarding the criteria for differentiating emotions, the current investigation examined whether the antecedents and facial expressions of embarrassment, shame, and guilt are distinct. In Study 1, participants wrote down events that had caused them to feel embarrassment, shame, and guilt. Coding of these events revealed that embarrassment was associated with transgressions of...

Drawing on the embodied simulation account of emotional information processing, we argue that the physical experience of weight is associated with the emotional experience of guilt and thus that weight intensifies the experience of guilt. Across 4 studies, we found that participants who wore a heavy backpack experienced higher levels of guilt compared to those who wore a light backpack. Additio...