Cited by 3,222Emotions and Moral BehaviorPsychology of Moral and Emotional JudgmentEthics in Business and Education

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 183 of the 183 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; none of the 203 sources its claims cite is checked for support yet.

Moral Emotions and Moral Behavior

Open access
Tangney, June Price, Stuewig, Jeff, Mashek, Debra J.·2007·Annual Review of Psychology

Abstract

Abstract Moral emotions represent a key element of our human moral apparatus, influencing the link between moral standards and moral behavior. This chapter reviews current theory and research on moral emotions. We first focus on a triad of negatively valenced “self-conscious” emotions—shame, guilt, and embarrassment. As in previous decades, much research remains focused on shame and guilt. We review current thinking on the distinction between shame and guilt, and the relative advantages and disadvantages of these two moral emotions. Several new areas of research are highlighted: research on the domain-specific phenomenon of body shame, styles of coping with shame, psychobiological aspects of shame, the link between childhood abuse and later proneness to shame, and the phenomena of vicarious or “collective” experiences of shame and guilt. In recent years, the concept of moral emotions has been expanded to include several positive emotions—elevation, gratitude, and the sometimes morally relevant experience of pride. Finally, we discuss briefly a morally relevant emotional process—other-oriented empathy.

Overview

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Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

This review argues that moral emotions moderate the link between moral standards and moral behavior, with guilt generally more adaptive and shame more often maladaptive. It synthesizes theory and research on shame, guilt, embarrassment, pride, elevation, gratitude, and other-oriented empathy.

Key findings

  • Shame and guilt are distinguished by focus on the global self versus a specific behavior; event-type and public/private distinctions are not well supported. In one cited study, when participants were asked about exposure of an inferior self, only 6.7% identified the feeling as shame (twice as many identified guilt); in a moral-exposure condition, embarrassment was the modal emotion, three times more common than shame.
  • Guilt-proneness is linked to reparative action, other-oriented empathy, constructive anger responses, and less antisocial/risky behavior. Fifth-grade shame-free guilt predicted lower adolescent arrest, conviction, and incarceration, more safe sex, and less drug abuse while controlling for family income and mothers’ education; among jail inmates, guilt-proneness negatively predicted recidivism and substance abuse during the first year post-release. In Stuewig et al. (2006), across four samples, externalization of blame mediated shame-proneness and verbal/physical aggression, while guilt-proneness showed a direct inverse relationship to aggression in three of four samples.
  • Shame-proneness is linked to hiding/defensiveness, anger and aggression, psychological symptoms (low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, eating disorder symptoms, PTSD, suicidal ideation), and risky/illegal behavior; the review finds virtually no evidence for shame’s presumed adaptive inhibitory function. Psychobiologically, shame uniquely predicted proinflammatory cytokine response, and among people with HIV, persistent shame predicted t-cell decline.
  • Positive moral emotions and empathy are also reviewed: elevation, gratitude, and pride; gratitude is linked to well-being and resilience, and other-oriented empathy is linked to altruistic helping, whereas self-oriented personal distress is unrelated to altruism and may interfere with prosocial behavior.

Methods

  • Narrative review of current theory and research on moral emotions; no primary data collection.
  • Synthesizes prior empirical and theoretical work across children, adolescents, college students, adults, clinical/trauma samples, and jail inmates, as cited.
  • Main analysis is conceptual synthesis of shame, guilt, embarrassment, pride, elevation, gratitude, and empathy in relation to moral standards, moral decisions, and moral behavior.

Limitations

  • Stated: “owing to space limitations,” the chapter focuses on processes upstream from intentions; little research has examined relations between moral standards and moral emotional factors or their interactive influence. Also stated: childhood abuse–shame findings are mixed due to different measures and conceptualizations, retrospective reports have known weaknesses, and some cited studies used small samples.
  • Evident: as a narrative review, it does not report a systematic search strategy, meta-analysis, or primary empirical test; conclusions depend on the cited literature and the authors’ framework.

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Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1146/annurev.psych.56.091103.070145

Cites

183 of 183 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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Claims the paper makes

133 Not checked yet · 42 Own interpretation · 18 No basis given · 2 Own method · 1 Own result

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Show all 116 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 58
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 35
80 of 80
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    People can anticipate their likely emotional reactions, such as guilt versus pride/self-approval, as they consider behavioral alternatives.

    “People can anticipate their likely emotional reactions (e.g., guilt versus pride/self-approval) as they consider behavioral alternatives.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    People’s anticipatory emotional reactions are typically inferred based on their history—that is, based on their past consequential emotions in reaction to similar actual behaviors and events.

    “In our view, people’s anticipatory emotional reactions are typically inferred based on history—that is, based on their past consequential emotions in reaction to similar actual behaviors and events.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    People’s moral standards are dictated in part by universal moral laws and in part by culturally specific proscriptions.

    “People’s moral standards are dictated in part by universal moral laws, and in part by culturally specific proscriptions.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The self is partly defined by interpersonal relations and group memberships.

    “To the extent that the self is, in part, defined by our interpersonal relations and group memberships, it is possible to construe the behavior of an in-group member as reflecting on the self.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Moral behavior can be evaluated with respect to the welfare of the individual, his or her close relationships, or society.

    “Thus, when considering the welfare of the individual, his or her close relationships, or society, feelings of guilt represent the moral emotion of choice.”
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Citations

Cites

Show all 177 references

Research works printed but not linked: 22

  1. Batson CD, 1991, The Altruism Question.
  2. Clark HB, 1988, Educ. Treat. Child., 11, 45
  3. Cupach WR, 1990, Communication Yearbook 13, 323
  4. Eisenberg N, 1986, Altruistic Cognition, Emotion, and Behavior.
  5. Eisenberg N, 1990, Merrill-Palmer Q., 36, 507
  6. Ferguson TJ, 1991, Child Dev., 62, 827
  7. Ferguson TJ, 2000, Genet. Soc. Gen. Psychol. Monogr., 126, 319
  8. Feshbach ND, 1987, Empathy and Its Development, 271
  9. Haidt J, 2002, Elevation: An Emotion That Makes People Want to Do Good Deeds.
  10. Lewis M, 1992, Shame: The Exposed Self.
  11. Marschall DE, 1996, Effects of induced shame on subsequent empathy and altruistic behavior.
  12. McLaughlin DE, 2002, Diss. Abstr. Int. B Sci. Eng., 62, 4470
  13. Merisca R, 1994, Guilt, not moral reasoning, relates to volunteerism, prosocial behavior, lowered aggressiveness, and eschewal of racism.
  14. Schaefer DA, 2000, Diss. Abstr. Int. B Sci. Eng., 60, 2389
  15. Schmader T, 2006, Stigma and Group Inequality: Social Psychological Approaches, 261
  16. Shweder RA, 1997, Morality and Health, 119
  17. Tangney JP, 1993, Symptoms of Depression, 161
  18. Tangney JP, 2006, J. Soc. Clin. Psychol.
  19. Tomkins SS, 1963, Affect, Imagery, Consciousness. Volume 2. The Negative Affects.
  20. Weiss J, 1993, How Psychotherapy Works.
  21. Weitzman O, 2004, HIV-related Shame and Guilt Predict CD4 Decline.
  22. Zahn-Waxler C, Robinson J. 1995. Empathy and guilt: early origins of feelings of responsibility. See Tangney & Fischer 1995, pp.143–73

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Metadata

Authors
Tangney, J. P., Stuewig, J., & Mashek, D. J.
Affiliations
  • George Mason University (US)
  • Department of Psychology, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia 22030;,
  • Harvey Mudd College (US)
Venue
Annual Review of Psychology
Published
2007-01-01
Volume
58
Issue
1
Pages
345-372
ISSN
  • 0066-4308 (ISSN-L)
  • 1545-2085
OpenAlex
W2136267579
Cited by
3,222
References
177
Citations by year
2026: 261 · 2025: 295 · 2024: 253 · 2023: 240 · 2022: 253 · 2021: 238 · 2020: 219 · 2019: 222 · 2018: 152 · 2017: 137 · 2016: 148 · 2015: 152 · 2014: 148 · 2013: 147 · 2012: 124
FWCI
3.94
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Annual Review of Psychology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institute on Drug Abuse (#R01 DA14694, R01DA014694)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Ethics in Business and Education
Keywords
moral emotions, moral behavior, shame, guilt, embarrassment, body shame, childhood abuse, collective shame, altitude, gratitude, empathy
MeSH terms
Adult, Anger, Body Image, Child, Child Abuse, Conscience, Defense Mechanisms, Emotions, Empathy, Guilt, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Morals, Shame, Social Behavior, Social Conformity, Personal Construct Theory, Virtues

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