ABSTRACT
This chapter examines remorse and related emotions, in particular, regret, guilt and shame. It surveys conceptual and empirical literature concerning remorse in relation to other emotions. The chapter concedes that the central case of remorse may be only infrequently encountered in actual emotional experiences. In 1988, a double issue of the journal The Psychotherapy Patient was devoted to the subject of remorse. Contributors to that issue generally approached the topic of remorse as a psychotherapeutic issue, often reflecting on their experiences with remorse as a presenting problem in psychotherapy. Schneiderman proposed two types of remorse, based on guilt and on shame respectively. Guilt-based remorse concerns a betrayal of personal ideals, while shame-based remorse involves mourning the loss of the person one might have become. Somatic remorse is concerned only with oneself, interpersonal remorse with close relationships, and ontological remorse with one's participation in humanity.
