Editing Guilt (emotion) (section)

== Comparison with shame ==
Guilt and [[shame]] are two closely related concepts, but they have key differences that should not be overlooked.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tangney |first1=June Price |last2=Miller |first2=Rowland S. |last3=Flicker |first3=Laura |last4=Barlow |first4=Deborah Hill |title=Are shame, guilt, and embarrassment distinct emotions? |journal=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology |date=1996 |volume=70 |issue=6 |pages=1256–1269 |doi=10.1037/0022-3514.70.6.1256 |pmid=8667166 }}</ref> Cultural Anthropologist Ruth Benedict describes shame as the result of a violation of cultural or social values, while guilt is conjured up internally when one's personal morals are violated. To put it more simply, the primary difference between shame and guilt is the source that creates the emotion. Shame arises from a real or imagined negative perception coming from others and guilt arises from a negative perception of one's own thoughts or actions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wong |first1=Ying |last2=Tsai |first2=Jeanne |chapter=Cultural Models of Shame and Guilt |pages=209–223 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b7zOX2ZIBHQC&pg=PA209 |editor1-last=Tracy |editor1-first=Jessica L. |editor2-last=Robins |editor2-first=Richard W. |editor3-last=Tangney |editor3-first=June Price |title=The Self-conscious Emotions: Theory and Research |date=2007 |publisher=Guilford Press |isbn=978-1-59385-486-7 }}</ref>

Psychoanalyst [[Helen Block Lewis]] stated that, "The experience of shame is directly about the [[Psychology of self|self]], which is the focus of evaluation. In guilt, the self is not the central object of negative evaluation, but rather the thing done is the focus."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Harrington |first1=John |title=Shame and Guilt in Neurosis. By Helen Block Lewis. International Universities Press, New York. 1971. Pp. 525. Price $15.00. |journal=British Journal of Psychiatry |date=July 1972 |volume=121 |issue=560 |pages=105 |doi=10.1192/s0007125000001483 |s2cid=191884047 }}</ref> An individual can still possess a positive perception of themselves while also feeling guilt for certain actions or thoughts they took part in. Contrary to guilt, Shame has a more inclusive focus on the individual as a whole. Fossum and Mason's ideas clearly outline this idea in their book Facing Shame. They state that "While guilt is a painful feeling of regret and responsibility for one's actions, shame is a painful feeling about oneself as a person".<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/facingshamefamil00merl|title=Facing shame : families in recovery|last=Fossum, Merle A.|year=1989 |orig-year= 1986|publisher=Norton|isbn=0-393-30581-3|oclc=858609300|url-access=registration}}</ref>

Shame can almost be described as looking at yourself unfavorably through the eyes of others. Psychiatrist Judith Lewis Herman portrays this idea by stating that "Shame is an acutely self-conscious state in which the self is 'split,' imagining the self in the eyes of the other; by contrast, in guilt the self is unified".<ref>{{Citation|last=Herman|first=Judith Lewis|chapter=Shattered shame states and their repair|date=2018-06-14|pages=157–170|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-429-48014-0|doi=10.4324/9780429480140-4|title=Shattered States|s2cid=204352687 }}</ref> Both shame and guilt are directly related to self-perception, only shame causes the individual to account for the cultural and social beliefs of others. 

Paul Gilbert talks about the powerful hold that shame can take over someone in his article Evolution, Social Roles, and the Differences in Shame and Guilt. He says that "The fear of shame and ridicule can be so strong that people will risk serious physical injury or even death to avoid it. One of the reasons for this is because shame can indicate serious damage to social acceptance and a breakdown in a variety of social relationships. The evolutionary root of shame is in a self-focused, social threat system related to competitive behavior and the need to prove oneself acceptable/desirable to others"<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gilbert |first1=Paul |title=Evolution, Social Roles, and the Differences in Shame and Guilt |journal=Social Research |date=2003 |volume=70 |issue=4 |pages=1205–1230 |doi=10.1353/sor.2003.0013 |id={{Gale|A112943741}} |jstor=40971967 |s2cid=142102686 |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/558610 }}</ref> Guilt on the other hand evolved from a place of Care-Giving and avoidance of any act that harms others.