Feelings of Guilt Positively Associated with Chronic Disease

by | Apr 11, 2024 | 2022, Brain Health, Recent Articles

Written by Taylor Woosley, Science Writer. Binary logistic regression results adjusted for gender, age, and education show that subjects with higher feelings of guilt were two times more likely to report a chronic disease (p < 0.001). 

depressed womanAs life expectancy continues to increase, more people worldwide are diagnosed with chronic noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)1. For many chronic conditions, growing evidence recognizes both biological and psychological predispositions toward chronic disease2. Recent literature supports the biopsychosocial model of pain, according to which biological, psychological, and sociocultural variables interact in a dynamic manner to shape an individual’s response to chronic pain and disease3.

Many people living with NCDs, such as cardiovascular disease or diabetes, are known to encounter stigma-related manifestations like feelings of shame and guilt4. Shame is recognized to be a negative self-conscious emotion that significantly impacts people’s experience of chronic disease and pain5. Guilt is associated with remorse and regret related to an individual’s behavior and how it affects others, which may have important implications for behavior change in people with chronic disease as they navigate their disease and disease management6.

Cerna et al. conducted a cross-sectional study to investigate the associations of guilt and shame with self-rated health in subjects with chronic disease. Data included was from a national sample of the Czech population aged 15 years and older. 1000 participants (mean age 46, SD=17.3), sex (48.6% men), were included in the final analysis. The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) was utilized to evaluate self-related health, chronic disease state, and feelings of guilt and shame.

57.9% of subjects reported the presence of a chronic disease, 17.7% reported feelings of guilt and 16.8% reported feelings of shame. The Kruskal-Wallis test was utilized to compare the background characteristics of the sample and different sociodemographic groups. Furthermore, the presence of guilt and shame and their associations with chronic disease was assessed using a multinomial logistic regression model. Significant findings of the study are as follows:

  • Binary logistic regression results adjusted for gender, age, and education show that subjects with higher feelings of guilt were two times more likely to report a chronic disease with odds ratio (OR) 2.0; 95%-confidence interval (CI) 1.37-2.92, (p < 0.001).
  • Multinomial regression results adjusted for gender, age, and education show that participants with higher feelings of guilt were more likely to suffer from asthma, arthritis, back pain, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and depression. The association was strongest in the case of cancer (p < 0.001).
  • No significant associations between feelings of shame with individual health problems was observed.

Results of the cross-sectional study show that only feelings of guilt were associated with incidence of a chronic disease. Further research regarding the connection between thoughts and feelings and overall health are necessary. Study limitations include the design of the study which does not allow for causality and the potential influence of the method of data collection on participant’s answers.

Source: Cerna, Alena, Klara Malinakova, Jitse P. Van Dijk, Radka Zidkova, and Peter Tavel. “Guilt, shame and their associations with chronic diseases in Czech adults.” Psychology, Health & Medicine 27, no. 2 (2022): 503-512.

© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

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Posted April 11, 2024.

Taylor Woosley studied biology at Purdue University before becoming a 2016 graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a major in Writing. She currently resides in Glen Ellyn, IL.

References:

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