Guilt appears to be a factor that may increase the severity of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and negatively impact treatment outcomes. However, researchers and clinicians have paid little attention to addressing guilt in OCD treatment. Because guilt is an important perpetuating and mediating factor for OCD symptoms and the development of guilt-specific strategies may yield improved treatment outcomes, we hypothesized that a review of the relevant literature may provide important guidance for the field.
To identify existing scientific contributions across psychological, biologic, and theological disciplines, we conducted a systematic review of the literature on the topic of pathological guilt (PG) in OCD.
Fourteen studies focusing on both PG and OCD were identified. The content of these papers consistently reflected the theme that guilt plays a significant role in OCD and obsessive-compulsive symptoms.
The potential influence and moderating effects of guilt require more focused attention in the clinical management of OCD. Development of routine standardized measures and treatment protocols targeting the role of guilt in OCD, in addition to consultation with clergy or other appropriate community resources, would provide valuable contributions to the literature. Addressing this affective component related to OCD may lead to improved treatment outcomes and fewer relapses for this debilitating and frequently chronic illness.
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 4. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 11 October 2026.
All research outputs
#11,914,052
of 34,411,289 outputs
Outputs from Annals of Clinical Psychiatry (Taylor & Francis Ltd)
#238
of 538 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#83,427
of 256,493 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Annals of Clinical Psychiatry (Taylor & Francis Ltd)
#5
of 6 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 34,411,289 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 64th percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 538 research outputs from this source. They typically receive more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 8.6. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 52% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 256,493 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 66% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 6 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one.
