Bidirectional relations between guilt/shame and moral sensitivity

A two-wave cross-lagged analysis

Bibliographic Data

ID10123506
AuthorsYue Zhou (0009-0009-2070-9715, Moral Culture Research Center of Hunan Normal University, Hunan Normal University, Hunan Province, China), Yanhui Xiang (0000-0002-5317-9708, Moral Culture Research Center of Hunan Normal University, Hunan Normal University, Hunan Province, China, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume150
Issue4
Pages453-466
Publication date2022-09-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of General Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-1309 • E-ISSN: 1940-0888
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00221309.2022.2115444
PMID36047507
OpenAlexW4294086746
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited40

Emotions, particularly social moral emotions, are believed to play a critically important role in moral development. Although it is of great theoretical and practical significance to improve individual morality, especially moral sensitivity, from the perspective of moral emotion, little attention has been paid to investigating the causal mechanisms between moral emotions and moral sensitivity. Therefore, through a longitudinal study, the current study explored the causal relationship between moral sensitivity and the typical moral emotions (guilt and shame) from empathy theory and cognitive appraisal theory of emotions. A total of 668 adolescents completed the two-wave survey over two years. We explored the causal association between moral emotions and moral sensitivity using the structural equation model. The cross-lagged analysis showed a reciprocal relationship between guilt and moral sensitivity, whereas shame did not have a unidirectional or bidirectional predictive relationship with moral sensitivity. This is the first research that reveals the significance of guilt as a moral emotion to enhance moral sensitivity. The finding offered a new practical and theoretical viewpoint for promoting individual moral development from the perspective of social moral emotional cultivation

Empathy · Epistemology · Moral development · Moral disengagement · Moral psychology · Moral reasoning · Morality · Perspective (graphical · Shame · Social cognitive theory of morality · Emotions and Moral Behavior · Humor Studies and Applications · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Social Psychology

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