Self-concealment, secrecy, and guilt.

OBJECTIVE: Individuals with a tendency to conceal unflattering information about themselves are more likely to be preoccupied by their secrets and tend to report more negative affect. According to theory, this negative affect is due to self-concealers' conflicting motivation to be authentic in their relationship but fear the negative consequences should they reveal their secrets, which promotes ill-fated attempts to suppress. The purpose of the current study was to test a central component of this model. METHODS: Two studies of adults who were in a romantic relationship and keeping a secret from their partner (combined N = 635; 67.2% women; Mage  = 39.6, SD = 11.9) were surveyed on four biweekly occasions. Multilevel mediation analyses were conducted to test whether preoccupation and suppression mediated the link between self-concealing and negative affect and guilt. RESULTS: The data support the hypotheses. Self-concealers were more preoccupied with and prone to suppress their secret than those low on the trait, which, in turn, predicted greater negative affect and guilt. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that self-concealers' insecurities and fear of the relational consequences of disclosure set the stage for the debilitating cycle of suppression and preoccupation that leaves them feeling anxious and guilty.

Winning isn't everything: Guilt proneness and competitive vs. non-competitive motivation.

OBJECTIVE: Guilt proneness is associated with both high motivation to succeed and enhanced concern for others. However, in competition, achieving success requires harming others' interests, which demotivates guilt-prone individuals. Given the prevalence of competition in social and professional life, we examine the relation between guilt proneness, general motivation, and competitive motivation. METHOD: Two experiments and two laboratory studies (N = 1735) measured guilt proneness, general motivation, and competitive motivation, and their effects on competitive preferences and choices. Study settings included students' choice of playing a game individually vs. competitively (Study 1), physicians' likelihood to seek residency in medical fields characterized by high competitiveness (Study 2), amateur athletes' preferences between inclusive and win-oriented team strategies (Study 3), and online workers' evaluations of a hypothetical scenario (Study 4). RESULTS: Guilt proneness was related positively to general motivation, but negatively to competitive motivation. Guilt proneness, indirectly through lower competitive motivation, predicted a lower likelihood of pursuing competitive paths and preference for non-competitive strategies. Emphasizing prosocial aspects of competitiveness attenuated these effects. CONCLUSIONS: Guilt proneness is related to high general motivation but to a lower desire to win. Guilt-prone individuals strive for excellence, but through non-competitive paths, whereas people with lower guilt proneness prefer competing.

The underlying role of food guilt in adolescent food choice: A potential conceptual model for adolescent food choice negotiations under circumstances of conscious internal conflict.

Food choice decisions are challenging to conceptualise, and literature is lacking specific to adolescent food choice decisions. Understanding adolescent nutrition and food choice is becoming increasingly important. This research aims to understand what influences the food choices of Irish adolescents, and the mental negotiations occurring in food-based decisions. Additionally, it aims to develop a holistic conceptual model of food choice, specific to adolescents. A qualitative study was conducted in N = 47 Irish adolescents, via focus group discussions using vignettes to introduce discussion topics around food and eating habits. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis, involving both semantic and latent analysis. Thirteen distinct factors related to adolescent food choices were discussed, forming one main theme and three inter-linking subthemes. The main theme relates to food choice being multi-factorial in nature, needing a balance of priorities through internal negotiations for food choice with the aim of reducing food guilt. This can change depending on the social setting. Social concerns and food guilt appear to play a strong role in adolescent food choice, with adolescents feeling guilty for eating unhealthy food, wasting food, or spending/wasting money on food. A conceptual model for food choice in adolescents was developed, named a "Food Choice Funnel", incorporating a specific "Food Guilt Matrix". While we should encourage healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle, it is important to understand the value placed on the social component to eating among adolescents, since they have increasing social interactions and occasions where choosing health-promoting foods may be more challenging. Healthy eating messages should be designed in a balanced manner to support healthy growth and development, while limiting the potential to induce feelings of guilt among adolescents.

Guilt and Shame in Patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders.

INTRODUCTION: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a tremendous psychiatric illness with a variety of severe symptoms. Feelings of shame and guilt are universal social emotions that fundamentally shape the way people interact with each other. Mental illness is therefore often related to pronounced feelings of shame and guilt in a maladaptive form. METHODS: A total of 62 participants (38 women and 24 men) were clinically and psychometrically investigated. RESULTS: The OCD patients (n = 31) showed a maladaptive guilt and shame profile, characterized by increased interpersonal feelings of guilt accompanied by a stronger tendency to self-criticism and increased punitive sense of guilt with a simultaneous prevailing tendency to perfectionism, as well as an increased concern for the suffering of others. The proneness to profuse shame in OCD patients seems to be in the context of the violation of inner values and a negative self-image with persistent self-criticism. CONCLUSION: Although there are limitations with a small sample size in this monocentric approach, our study underlines the importance of an individual consideration of the leading obsessive-compulsive symptomatology, especially in the context of very personal feelings of guilt and shame. Further multidimensional studies on guilt and shame could contribute to their implementation more strongly in individualized psychotherapy.

Interpersonal helping in the workplace: social expectation predicts anticipated guilt and intention to help a coworker.

Promoting interpersonal helping among coworkers is an important aim for any organisation that cares about employee well-being. Drawing on guilt aversion hypothesis, this research focuses on the power of social expectations in promoting prosocial behaviour among employees and investigates the role of anticipated guilt for failing to meet coworkers' expectations. In two preregistered studies, the effect of beneficiary expectation on benefactors' anticipated guilt and intention to help was investigated. In Study 1, Japanese participants (n = 284) recalled a situation when they helped a coworker spontaneously, and evaluated perceived beneficiary expectation to receive help, as well as anticipated guilt for not helping. Beneficiary expectation positively predicted anticipated guilt, and the effect was stronger when the beneficiary was a same-status colleague, and when interpersonal helping frequency in the organisation was low. Study 2 (n = 499) employed vignettes and manipulated beneficiary expectation. A mediational model revealed that beneficiary expectation leads to more anticipated guilt for not helping, which, in turn, increases employees' intention to help. Together, these studies show that employees are sensitive to their coworkers' expectations, and guilt-averse; therefore, interpersonal helping among employees may be promoted by establishing legitimate expectations of prosociality in the workplace.

A latent profile analysis of moral emotions following moral transgressions.

OBJECTIVE: Moral transgressions (MTs), events that violate one's moral code, are associated with the moral emotions of guilt and shame. However, there may be different patterns by which people experience guilt and shame that affect distress following MTs. METHOD: Undergraduates (N = 1371) exposed to an MT completed self-report assessments. This study used latent profile analysis (LPA) to examine profiles based on guilt cognitions, internalized shame, and distress in relation to a reported MT. Cognitive flexibility, years since the MT, and deliberate and intrusive rumination were examined as variables to determine how these factors predicted profile membership. RESULTS: Results from the LPA revealed a three-profile solution: a low moral distress profile (n = 1002), a moderate moral distress profile (n = 262), and a shame prominent profile (n = 107). Results indicated that higher levels of deliberate and intrusive rumination and lower levels of cognitive flexibility significantly increased the likelihood of belonging to the moderate moral distress or shame prominent profiles compared to the low moral distress profile. Higher levels of intrusive rumination and lower levels of cognitive flexibility also significantly increased the likelihood of belonging to the shame prominent profile over the moderate distress profile. CONCLUSION: Three different profiles emerged, with the shame prominent profile being driven primarily by internalized shame. Results suggest that intrusive rumination and cognitive inflexibility are risk factors to experiencing adverse responses to MTs.

Perinatal grief creates vulnerability to anxiety in subsequent pregnancy: the mediating role of bereavement-related guilt.

AIM: This study examines the associations among perinatal grief symptoms, bereavement-related guilt, and pregnancy-related anxiety in subsequent pregnancy within the framework of a hypothesised mourning model. METHOD: Pregnant women with history of a perinatal loss were recruited using convenience sampling methods and completed a questionnaire set including the Perinatal Grief Scale, Bereavement Guilt Scale, and Pregnancy-related Anxiety Scale. RESULTS: Mediation analysis was performed to evaluate the hypothesised model in a sample of pregnant women with history of a perinatal loss (N = 111). The results indicated that bereavement-related guilt functions as a mediator in the relationship between perinatal grief severity and pregnancy-related anxiety experienced in subsequent pregnancies. CONCLUSION: These findings were evaluated in light of previous studies, providing a bereavement-based perspective on the potential transmission of the mental effects of perinatal loss to subsequent pregnancy.

Evaluation of the coping attitudes of Alzheimer patients' relatives from the perspectives of depression, anxiety and guilt.

This study aims to assess coping attitudes in primary caregivers of individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease residing in an institution, and to evaluate the association between coping attitudes and levels of guilt, depression, and anxiety among caregivers. The sample of this study consists of 150 individuals with relatives diagnosed with Alzheimer. The Beck Anxiety Inventory, the Coping Attitudes Scale, the Guilt Inventory, and the Beck Depression Inventory were used in the present study. It was determined that the participants' coping levels were below the average score and that they frequently used problem focus coping attitudes. A positive relationship was found between the emotion focused, nonfunctional coping levels of the participants and their continuous guilt, anxiety and depression levels. Depression and guilt has a strong effect on coping attitudes, while anxiety was determined to be a moderate predictive variable. Findings show that caregivers with depression, anxiety and continuous guilt use non-functional and emotional coping more frequently.

How might cancer patients experience existential guilt? A qualitative research.

OBJECTIVES: Existential guilt is a deep and multidimensional concept that is correlated with concepts, such as in/authenticity, existential anxiety, decisiveness, and personal and social responsibility. The aim of the present study is to investigate the experience of existential guilt among cancer patients. METHODS: The present research was conducted with a qualitative method with a content analysis design. A purposeful sampling method was used to select the participants and the sampling procedure went on until we reached data saturation. Data were obtained using semi-structured interviews with the participants. RESULTS: From a total of 18 interviews, 94 codes related to existential guilt were obtained. After the analysis, three main concepts were extracted: (1) incompleteness, (2) passivity, and (3) feelings of harm to self and others. Each of these had a number of subcategories. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: The participants of the present research were found to experience existential guilt in different ways. The research showed that it is necessary to find the sources of existential guilt in order that effective therapeutic attention can be given cancer patients.

The psychophysiology of guilt in healthy adults.

Guilt is a negative emotion, elicited by realizing one has caused actual or perceived harm to another person. Anecdotally, guilt often is described as a visceral and physical experience. However, while the way that the body responds to and contributes to emotions is well known in basic emotions, little is known about the characteristics of guilt as generated by the autonomic nervous system. This study investigated the physiologic signature associated with guilt in adults with no history of psychological or autonomic disorder. Healthy adults completed a novel task, including an initial questionnaire about their habits and attitudes, followed by videos designed to elicit guilt, as well as the comparison emotions of amusement, disgust, sadness, pride, and neutral. During the video task, participants' swallowing rate, electrodermal activity, heart rate, respiration rate, and gastric activity rate were continuously recorded. Guilt was associated with alterations in gastric rhythms, electrodermal activity, and swallowing rate relative to some or all the comparison emotions. These findings suggest that there is a mixed pattern of sympathetic and parasympathetic activation during the experience of guilt. These results highlight potential therapeutic targets for modulation of guilt in neurologic and psychiatric disorders with deficient or elevated levels of guilt, such as frontotemporal dementia, posttraumatic stress disorder, and Obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Guilt and Regret Experienced by Parents of Children Born Extremely Preterm.

OBJECTIVES: To explore decisional regret of parents of babies born extremely preterm and analyze neonatal, pediatric, and parental factors associated with regret. STUDY DESIGN: Parents of infants born <29 weeks of gestational age, aged between 18 months and 7 years, attending neonatal follow-up were enrolled. Hospital records were reviewed to examine morbidities and conversations with parents about levels of care. Parents were asked the following question: "Knowing what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently?" Mixed methods were used to analyze responses. RESULTS: In total, 248 parents (98% participation) answered, and 54% reported they did not have regret. Of those who reported regret (n = 113), 3 themes were most frequently invoked: 35% experienced guilt, thinking they were responsible for the preterm birth; 28% experienced regret about self-care decisions; and 20% regretted decisions related to their parental role, generally wishing they knew sooner how to get involved. None reported regret about life-and-death decisions made at birth or in the neonatal intensive care unit. Impairment at follow-up, gestational age, and decisions about levels/reorientation of care were not associated with regret. More mothers reported feeling guilt about the preterm birth (compared with fathers); parents of children with severe lesions on ultrasonography of the head were less likely to report regret. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately one-half of the parents of infants born extremely preterm had regrets regarding their neonatal intensive care unit stay. Causes of regret and guilt should be addressed and minimized.

Understanding guilt-related interpersonal dysfunction in obsessive-compulsive personality disorder through computational modeling of two social interaction tasks.

BACKGROUND: Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) is a high-prevalence personality disorder characterized by subtle but stable interpersonal dysfunction. There have been only limited studies addressing the behavioral patterns and cognitive features of OCPD in interpersonal contexts. The purpose of this study was to investigate how behaviors differ between OCPD individuals and healthy controls (HCs) in the context of guilt-related interpersonal responses. METHOD: A total of 113 participants were recruited, including 46 who were identified as having OCPD and 67 HCs. Guilt-related interpersonal responses were manipulated and measured with two social interactive tasks: the Guilt Aversion Task, to assess how anticipatory guilt motivates cooperation; and the Guilt Compensation Task, to assess how experienced guilt induces compensation behaviors. The guilt aversion model and Fehr-Schmidt inequity aversion model were adopted to analyze decision-making in the Guilt Aversion Task and the Guilt Compensation Task, respectively. RESULTS: Computational model-based results demonstrated that, compared with HCs, the OCPD group exhibited less guilt aversion when making cooperative decisions as well as less guilt-induced compensation after harming others. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that individuals with OCPD tend to be less affected by guilt than HCs. These impairments in guilt-related responses may prevent adjustments in behaviors toward compliance with social norms and thus result in interpersonal dysfunctions.

Self-blame in major depression: a randomised pilot trial comparing fMRI neurofeedback with self-guided psychological strategies.

BACKGROUND: Overgeneralised self-blame and worthlessness are key symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD) and have previously been associated with self-blame-selective changes in connectivity between right superior anterior temporal lobe (rSATL) and subgenual frontal cortices. Another study showed that remitted MDD patients were able to modulate this neural signature using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) neurofeedback training, thereby increasing their self-esteem. The feasibility and potential of using this approach in symptomatic MDD were unknown. METHOD: This single-blind pre-registered randomised controlled pilot trial probed a novel self-guided psychological intervention with and without additional rSATL-posterior subgenual cortex (BA25) fMRI neurofeedback, targeting self-blaming emotions in people with insufficiently recovered MDD and early treatment-resistance (n = 43, n = 35 completers). Participants completed three weekly self-guided sessions to rebalance self-blaming biases. RESULTS: As predicted, neurofeedback led to a training-induced reduction in rSATL-BA25 connectivity for self-blame v. other-blame. Both interventions were safe and resulted in a 46% reduction on the Beck Depression Inventory-II, our primary outcome, with no group differences. Secondary analyses, however, revealed that patients without DSM-5-defined anxious distress showed a superior response to neurofeedback compared with the psychological intervention, and the opposite pattern in anxious MDD. As predicted, symptom remission was associated with increases in self-esteem and this correlated with the frequency with which participants employed the psychological strategies in daily life. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that self-blame-rebalance neurofeedback may be superior over a solely psychological intervention in non-anxious MDD, although further confirmatory studies are needed. Simple self-guided strategies tackling self-blame were beneficial, but need to be compared against treatment-as-usual in further trials. https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN10526888.

The emotional experience of mothers of children with haemophilia: maternal guilt, effective coping strategies and resilience within the haemophilia community.

INTRODUCTION: Mothers of children with haemophilia (CWH) experience guilt related to this genetic condition. Several factors contributing to maternal guilt have been identified, but the scope and extent of guilt have not previously been quantified. AIM: This study provides insight into the experience of mothers of CWH and how they perceive and manage guilt. It then identifies the most common and helpful coping mechanisms. METHODS: Between May and October 2021, we distributed an anonymous electronic survey to mothers of CWH. The Parent Experience of Child Illness measured maternal guilt, the PROMIS Parent Proxy for Life Satisfaction measured perception of their child's life satisfaction and additional questions explored specific guilt factors and coping strategies. RESULTS: Eighty-seven mothers responded to the survey. Forty percent of mothers experienced increased guilt. The most common reasons for guilt included putting their child through pain during infusions and passing on the affected X chromosome. Perceived life satisfaction, increased age and genetic counselling were associated with less guilt. The most common coping strategies involved utilizing social support, self-education and connecting with other mothers in the community. CONCLUSION: Some mothers experienced increased feelings of guilt, illustrating the need for providers to tactfully provide anticipatory guidance and counselling. Tangible manifestations of haemophilia were more likely to trigger feelings of guilt than familial factors. Community immersion was beneficial, as other mothers in the community served as a source of social and educational support. Most mothers did not report guilt, illustrating the adaptability and resilience of the haemophilia community.

A qualitative exploration of the dynamics of guilt experience in family cancer caregivers.

Caregiving for cancer patients can cause stress among family caregivers. Caregiving stress is also associated with guilt as they cannot provide adequate care for cancer patients. However, guilt among family caregivers of cancer patients is poorly understood. This qualitative study aimed to explore the dynamics of guilt feelings in families that care for cancer patients. This study involved 45 family caregivers of cancer patients. Thematic data analysis was conducted. There were six themes emerging. Caregiving can be challenging, guilt and blame, guilt due to lack of self-capacity, guilt for neglecting others, no guilt at all, and discussion of guilt and blame as a caregiver. This study offers insight into social workers regarding the challenges and experiences faced by family caregivers of cancer patients. Appropriate health interventions and support should be provided to family caregivers of cancer patients to improve their well-being.

Mortality salience enhances neural activities related to guilt and shame when recalling the past.

Mortality salience (MS) influences cognition and behavior. However, its effect on emotion (especially moral emotions) and the underlying neural correlates are unclear. We investigated how MS priming modulated guilt and shame in a later recall task using functional magnetic resonance imaging. The behavioral results indicated that MS increased self-reported guilt but not shame. The neural results showed that MS strengthened neural activities related to the psychological processes of guilt and shame. Specifically, for both guilt and shame, MS increased activation in a region associated with self-referential processing (ventral medial prefrontal cortex). For guilt but not shame, MS increased the activation of regions associated with cognitive control (orbitofrontal cortex) and emotion processing (amygdala). For shame but not guilt, MS decreased brain functional connectivity related to self-referential processing. A direct comparison showed that MS more strongly decreased a functional connectivity related to self-referential processing in the shame than in the guilt condition. Additionally, the activation of insula during MS priming was partly predictive of neural activities related to guilt and shame in the subsequent recall task. Our study sheds light on the psychological and neural mechanisms of MS effects on moral emotions and provides theoretical insights for enriching terror management theory.

Mind wandering and sleep in daily life: A combined actigraphy and experience sampling study.

Individuals who sleep poorly report spending more time mind wandering during the day. However, past research has relied on self-report measures of sleep or measured mind wandering during laboratory tasks, which prevents generalization to everyday contexts. We used ambulatory assessments to examine the relations between several features of sleep (duration, fragmentation, and disturbances) and mind wandering (task-unrelated, stimulus-independent, and unguided thoughts). Participants wore a wristband device that collected actigraphy and experience-sampling data across 7 days and 8 nights. Contrary to our expectations, task-unrelated and stimulus-independent thoughts were not associated with sleep either within- or between-persons (n = 164). Instead, individual differences in unguided thoughts were associated with sleep disturbances and duration, suggesting that individuals who more often experience unguided train-of-thoughts have greater sleep disturbances and sleep longer. These results highlight the need to consider the context and features of mind wandering when relating it to sleep.

The Moderating Effect of Religiousness on the Relation Between Sexual Guilt and Shame and Well-Being Among Jewish Religious Single Men.

Jewish religious singles may feel guilty and ashamed due to sexual behaviors that violate religious law, such as pre-matrimony sexual relations, viewing pornography, and masturbation. This study examined the relation between sexual guilt and shame (SGS) and psychological well-being, and whether this relation was moderated by level of religiousness. It was hypothesized that SGS would be negatively related to psychological well-being and that this relation would be stronger at higher levels of religiousness compared to lower levels of religiousness. Participants were single young-adult men (N = 165, Mage = 23.3) belonging to the national-orthodox Jewish community in Israel who completed online questionnaires. SGS was positively associated with anxiety and depression and negatively associated with life satisfaction. Additionally, the relations between SGS and measures of psychological well-being were moderated by the level of religiousness. However, contrary to the hypothesized moderation effect, SGS was positively related to negative psychological consequences and negatively related to life satisfaction at a low level of religiousness, whereas at a high level of religiousness no significant relationship between SGS and the psychological outcome measures was found. These findings may indicate that there may be adaptive elements in religion that can help an individual cope with SGS, and thus to negate its detrimental effects on psychological well-being.

Breast cancer treatment and recovery: pets' roles as emotional buffers and stressors.

BACKGROUND: Research suggests pets foster affection, connection, and physical activity, yet has failed to address the challenges people diagnosed with cancer face in caring for their pets. The objective of this study was to better understand how pets serve as emotional buffers and/or stressors for people diagnosed with breast cancer, and how their ability to meet their pet's needs affects their well-being. METHODS: A cross-section study of people diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States was conducted. Adults diagnosed with stages 0 (in situ) -IV breast cancer and currently the primary guardian of at least one dog or cat and owned the animal(s) for at least 6 months, were recruited for the study. A total of 211 responses, obtained between July - November 2022 were analyzed. The survey included questions about participants' demographics; attachment to their pets; physical, emotional, and functional well-being; social support received from their pet; and 'pet parenting' concerns. Descriptive statistics were calculated to describe participants' demographics. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine predictors of pet attachment, well-being, support from pet, and 'pet parenting' concerns. RESULTS: People diagnosed with breast cancer derive substantial support from their pets (80% feel their pet makes them feel loved, needed, and offers a positive presence in the home), yet only 50% of participants feel this relationship is supported by their medical team. Controlling for owner demographics, heightened levels of pet-related guilt and concerns, along with lower perceived support from their pet, are all significant predictors of a lower quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight the benefits pets offer people diagnosed with breast cancer, yet also the distress they feel in trying to meet their pet's needs. Assessment conversations about pet ownership, including pet-related support systems, are needed to validate people's concerns and support the identification and development of pet support teams. Medical team facilitated discussions about pet care needs is suggested to demonstrate support for the pet-parent bond and help normalize feelings of guilt related to challenges in meeting their pet's needs. These discussions could be aided through the development of research-driven intervention strategies and online, freely accessible targeted tools.

Moral emotions and justifying beliefs about meat, fish, dairy and egg consumption: A comparative study of dietary groups.

Meat eaters and meat abstainers differ in their beliefs and moral emotions related to meat consumption alongside gender differences. Few studies have investigated beliefs and moral emotions in pescatarians and vegans. Little is known about differences in moral emotions and beliefs regarding dairy, eggs, and fish or about speciesist beliefs within and between specific dietary groups. To address this gap, we investigated moral emotions (consumption-related disgust and guilt), attitudes towards animals (Animal Attitudes Scale) and justifying beliefs related to meat (Carnism Inventory), dairy, egg, and fish consumption in omnivores (n = 167), pescatarians (n = 110), vegetarians (n = 116), and vegans (n = 149). Results showed that people who consumed animal-derived products reported lower disgust and guilt and held stronger justifying beliefs about consumption of these products, than those who did not consume animal products. All dietary groups significantly differed from each other in their attitudes about using animals for human benefit, with omnivores showing the least positive attitudes towards animals, followed by pescatarians and vegetarians, and with vegans showing the most positive attitudes towards animals. Women experienced greater moral emotions and held fewer justifying beliefs than men within groups where animal products were consumed and this was related to the animal-based products they consume (i.e., fish for pescatarians and eggs/dairy for vegetarians). These findings emphasise the importance of considering a wider range of animal products, and dietary groups in order to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the psychological underpinnings of animal product consumption. The results highlight differences between dietary groups in attitudes and moral concern towards animals, which may be important to consider when designing interventions to reduce animal product consumption.