Collective guilt functions adaptively by motivating reparation and preventing repeated intergroup conflict

Evidence

The feeling of distress from which collective guilt stems is often associated with pro-social behavioral intentions, for example, a motivation to improve the situation of the harmed outgroup as a means of making up for past wrongs. A variety of theorists have suggested that personal guilt is a functional emotion – it helps people learn what not to do again or what does not result in the attainment of desired goals (Eisenberg, 2000; Ferguson & Stegge, 1998; Tangney, 1995). At the collective level, historians such as Barkan (2000) have argued that an examination of past national wrongs may be key for avoiding repetition of the same forms of intergroup conflict. As the chapters in the third section of this volume indicate, collective guilt has an important role to play in the creation of improved social conditions following a violent past. For this reason alone, collective guilt is an important social psychological issue – it is not simply about the past, but it has serious implications for present and future intergroup relations. — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 87

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Accepting collective guilt can motivate building a more inclusive moral identity. — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt: International…, 58; Acknowledging group privilege triggers guilt that motivates reparative policy support — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt: International…, 426; Collective guilt motivates repair and compensation just as personal guilt does — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt: International…, 564 (+22 more)

Broader Connections

• Collective guilt can be functional by motivating reparative action #expands (0.95) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 229
• Collective guilt and shame drive conflict-attenuating behaviors, not just inner feelings. #corroborates (0.88) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 366
• Collective guilt requires admitting in-group responsibility and spurs reparations #expands (0.85) — Emanuele Castano, On the Perils of Glorifying the In-group, 65
• Collective guilt predicts reparative motivation while collective shame predicts distancing. #expands (0.82) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 346
• Multiple expiation routes make collective guilt’s consequences nonlinear and complex #complicates (0.82) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 824
• Perceived justification of ingroup harm blocks collective guilt regardless of harm severity #complicates (0.80) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 156
• Highly identified group members minimize collective guilt by morally reinterpreting ingroup wrongs #complicates (0.80) — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 2278
• Highly identified group members resist feeling collective guilt by reinterpreting events #complicates (0.80) — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 2278
• Collective victimization typically suppresses acceptance of collective guilt #complicates (0.80) — Sandra Penic, Guy Elcheroth, and Dario Spini, When Is Collective Exposure to War…, 8
• Reparation difficulty has an inverted-U effect on collective guilt #qualifies (0.78) — Torsten Masson and Markus Barth, The identification-guilt paradox…, 70
• Collective guilt peaks at moderate rather than low or high reparation difficulty #qualifies (0.78) — Michael T. Schmitt, Daniel A. Miller, Nyla R. Branscombe, and Jack W. Brehm, The Difficulty of Making Reparations…, 4
• Collective guilt acceptance is a validated measure mediating inequality salience and reparations #exemplifies (0.75) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 148
• Perceived group responsibility for inequity produces collective guilt #expands (0.75) — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt, 441