Men Less Guilty

Women experience more guilt than men according to a Spanish psychological survey. That’s not a good thing according to the study in the Spanish Journal of Psychology which suggests men feel too little guilt, and lack “interpersonal sensitivity,” while women suffer from destructive guilt largely imposed by society.

The research team tested 360 men and women from three age groups. The participants described how they would feel in a series of scenarios such as, “You have forgotten that today is one of your friends’ or relations’ birthday and you know that this type of thing is very important to them.

When it came to comparing the measurements of intensity of guilt of these groups,  the score was significantly higher for women, in all three age groups.

The researchers say difference is particularly stark in the 40- to 50-year-olds, though they described men between 25-33 as particularly insensitive, and they pointed out that the men became more sensitive as they aged. The study authors suggest education should be used to strengthen men’s sensitivity.