The Function Of Emotions
Emotions constitute one of the fundamental psychological processes that regulate an individual’s relationship with both the self and the surrounding environment. They assist in making sense of experiences, recognizing needs, and guiding behavior. The context in which emotions arise is essential for understanding their function. A healthy emotional experience enables individuals to establish more balanced relationships both with themselves and with others.
Within the framework of social psychology, emotions do not only shape internal experiences but also influence relational patterns and interpersonal dynamics.
Guilt And The Psychology Of Guilt
Emotions function as signals that guide behavior. Among these emotions, guilt holds a regulatory role by enabling individuals to evaluate their actions in accordance with their personal values and societal expectations. It supports the development of empathy and the assumption of responsibility.
The psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud associated the feeling of guilt with the individual’s internal regulatory mechanism, emphasizing its function in governing behavior. However, when experienced excessively, guilt may lead individuals to exceed their personal boundaries and lose balance within relationships. At this point, guilt becomes a significant psychological process that warrants careful consideration.
Types Of Guilt
Guilt does not manifest in the same manner in every individual, nor is it experienced with the same intensity. Individuals may feel guilty when they recognize that their behavior has had a negative impact on others. This emotion can motivate responsibility-taking and reparative action.
However, guilt does not always stem from a concrete wrongdoing. Individuals may also experience guilt when declining a request or failing to meet an expectation. Internalized beliefs such as “I should not upset anyone” create conditions in which guilt readily emerges. This may lead individuals to prioritize others’ needs over their own and, over time, to become alienated from themselves.
Thus, guilt extends beyond being merely an emotion and becomes a factor that influences relational dynamics.
The Use Of Guilt In Relationships
Guilt is not solely an internal evaluative process; it can also be shaped and directed within interpersonal relationships. Particularly in close relationships, the strength of emotional bonds may intensify the experience of guilt. Expressed expectations, frequent reminders of sacrifices, or communication framed around disappointment may cause individuals to feel responsible or even inadequate.
Statements such as “I did this for you” or “If you truly cared about me, you would not have behaved in that way” may not merely serve to express emotions; they may also aim to evoke guilt in the other person and influence behavior through emotional pressure.
In such circumstances, individuals may begin to place themselves in the background in order to mitigate the other person’s reaction or preserve the relationship. As this pattern is repeated, maintaining personal boundaries may become increasingly difficult, and individuals may struggle to make decisions autonomously. Consequently, relationships may shift away from healthy communication toward a more pressurizing and restrictive dynamic.
The Relationship Between Guilt And Manipulation
When guilt is shaped and utilized as a means of pressure within relationships, it may develop into a mechanism of manipulation. Manipulation can be defined as an attempt to influence another person’s emotions, thoughts, or behaviors through indirect means. In this process, the objective is to evoke guilt in order to guide behavior.
When guilt is experienced intensely, this mechanism may become more effective. Rather than making open and direct requests, individuals may employ implication, reproach, or emotional withdrawal to induce a sense of responsibility in the other person. In such situations, individuals may focus less on evaluating whether they are genuinely at fault and more on appeasing the other party and maintaining the relationship.
Over time, the balance of power within the relationship may become distorted. Individuals may prioritize the other person while placing their own self-respect, psychological integrity, and personal needs in a secondary position. When open communication is replaced by manipulation and emotional pressure, the relationship gradually moves away from psychological health.
Healthy Boundaries And Awareness
When experienced within an appropriate context, guilt can function as a constructive guide that encourages responsibility-taking, relational repair, and healthier communication. However, when directed through manipulative mechanisms, guilt may weaken personal boundaries and undermine autonomy.
The essential task is to distinguish whether the experienced guilt arises from one’s own behavior or from an external expectation. As Brené Brown emphasizes, guilt relates to “what we have done,” whereas shame relates to “who we are.” In healthy relationships, the aim is not to exercise control through guilt but to enable individuals to express themselves freely and maintain the boundaries they establish.
References
Freud, S. (1923). The Ego and the Id. London: Hogarth Press.
Brown, B. (2012). Daring Greatly. New York: Gotham Books.