title: The concept of guilt.
abstract: 1. Guilt is an uncomfortable feeling resulting from the commission or contemplation of a specific act contrary to one's internalized standards of conduct; it requires reparative action for the harm done to another to alleviate the uncomfortable feeling (distress). 2. The terms guilt and shame often are used interchangeably, but psychologic theory and phenomenologic studies clearly indicate that these are distinctly different affective experiences. Shame arises from the self's negative evaluation of the self (an evaluation that may or may not have been instigated by actual public exposure); guilt arises from the self's negative evaluation of specific behaviors or transgressions. 3. The psychiatric nurse is in an excellent position to intervene effectively with clients who are struggling with the emotional effects of guilt, and the psychiatric nurse can be instrumental in breaking the lifelong cycle of dysfunctional guilt feelings.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Program, Texas Woman's University, Houston 77030-2897.
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Robertson
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005619:Freudian Theory; D006167:Guilt; D006801:Humans; D008960:Models, Psychological; D011568:Psychiatric Nursing / Q000379:methods*; D012752:Shame