ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an overview of the research on shame and guilt to reveal what know about the influences of those emotions on behavior in general and to offer thoughts about how moral emotions can also stimulate unethical behaviors. The chapter concentrates on shame and guilt feelings that arise after unethical behavior in the workplace, showing how shame and guilt feelings can arise in the perpetrator, the victim, and possible witnesses or associated parties. It shows that much research on shame, guilt, and well-being is still needed. The effects of shame and guilt on all aspects of subjective well-being for all involved parties are unclear. The chapter has focused mainly upon the moral emotions of shame and guilt, but these are not the only moral emotions. One area of research would be to study how these moral emotions influence unethical behaviors, and how they affect all parties involved.
