Psychology of Guilt

Guilt is an uncomfortable emotional response associated with personal responsibility for violating one's moral code.

The moral violations may be doing something wrong or failing to do something one ought to do.

Guilt in a psychological sense is different from guilt in a legal sense. In psychology, a person feels guilty, which involves a self-conscious response along with the emotion. The feeling of guilt may be associated with past or present actions or failures to act associated with oneself or one's group. 

A person found guilty of breaking a law is a judgment made by some external authority. The person judged guilty may or may not feel guilty.

In psychology, a small amount of guilt related to a specific act or failure to act may be helpful to maintain important relationships when the feeling leads to actions that repair the perceived harm such as an apology or actions that rebuild trust.

Excessive guilt can be harmful. When people cannot gain relief from guilt they may need to see a psychotherapist.

Psychologists distinguish between guilt and shame. See the article on shame and the work by June Tangney. Guilt generally is experienced as a distressful emotion linked to some negative outcome or experience for which the person who feels guilty believes they have some degree of responsibility. In contrast, shame is a more pervasive negative evaluation of oneself as unworthy or blameworthy.

June Tangney was interviewed for an APA podcast. Here is a quote from that interview.

In a nutshell, when we feel shame, we feel bad about ourselves. We are fundamentally flawed because we did something. It reflects on who we are as a person. I’m a bad person for having done that. Guilt in contrast focuses on a behavior somewhat separate from the self. You can be a good person, but do a bad thing.

Guilt and Religion

Guilt and religion often have a close relationship. This is often seen in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder for those who obsess about wrongdoing and perform compulsive religious actions as if to rid oneself of guilt. For example, repeatedly confessing sin or asking forgiveness for sin.

 Geoffrey W. Sutton, PhD is Emeritus Professor of Psychology. He retired from a clinical practice and was credentialed in clinical neuropsychology and psychopharmacology. His website is  www.suttong.com

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Dr. Sutton’s posts are for educational purposes only. See a licensed mental health provider for diagnoses, treatment, and consultation.

Read more about shame and guilt

Dein S. (2013). The Origins of Jewish Guilt: Psychological, Theological, and Cultural Perspectives. Journal of spirituality in mental health, 15(2), 123–137. https://doi.org/10.1080/19349637.2012.737682

Rakesh, K., Arvind, S., Dutt, B. P., Mamta, B., Bhavneesh, S., Kavita, M., Navneet, K., Shrutika, G., Priyanka, B., Arun, K., Harkamal, K., & Jagdeep, K. (2021). The Role of Religiosity and Guilt in Symptomatology and Outcome of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Psychopharmacology bulletin, 51(3), 38–49.

Tangney, J. P. (1990). Assessing individual differences in proneness to shame and guilt: Development of the Self-Conscious Affect and Attribution Inventory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59, 102-111.

Tangney, J. P., Miller, R. S., Flicker, L., & Barlow, D. H. (1996). Are shame, guilt, and embarrassment distinct emotions? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 1256-1269.

Walinga, P., Corveleyn, J., & van Saane, J. (2005). GUILT AND RELIGION: THE INFLUENCE OF ORTHODOX PROTESTANT AND ORTHODOX CATHOLIC CONCEPTIONS OF GUILT ON GUILT-EXPERIENCE. Archiv Für Religionspsychologie / Archive for the Psychology of Religion, 27, 113–135. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23910015