The Relationship between Shame, Guilt, and Anxiety

To preliminarily explore the relationship between shame, guilt, and anxiety, this study randomly selected university students from multiple provinces and cities in China as research participants and conducted an online questionnaire survey. A total of 662 valid responses were collected. The Guilt and Shame Questionnaire (GSQ-8) and the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) were used to assess participants' levels of shame, guilt, and anxiety. Correlation and regression analyses were conducted using SPSS. The results indicated a significant positive correlation between shame/guilt and anxiety (r = 0.798, p < 0.001). Furthermore, even after controlling for demographic variables such as gender, age, place of origin, and educational background, shame and guilt remained significant predictors of anxiety (β = 0.808, t = 33.743, p < 0.001). These findings confirm the crucial role of shame and guilt as self-conscious emotions in the experience of anxiety among university students and suggest that addressing these emotions should be an important focus in mental health education and psychological interventions in higher education settings.