2013-01-18

[DIV28SUPER] SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND "GUILTING"

Family and friends, seeing a person they care about struggling with substance abuse, often will try imposing feelings of guilt to try to help the substance abuser gain control over this problem. And individuals who are substance abusers will often try to make themselves feel guilty in the hope that this might help. In many communities this strategy of imposing guilt is referred to as “guilting.”
How effective is this approach?

Guilting and an alternative to guilting that was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi are compared in an article titled:

AN INTRODUCTION TO “GUILTING”

http://drjeffreyrubin.wordpress.com/2012/09/24/an-introduction-to-guilting/


Empirical research that supports the theory is discussed in:

GUILTING VERSUS ENCOURAGING CARING: AN ADVANCE LESSON

http://drjeffreyrubin.wordpress.com/2012/09/29/guilting-versus-encouraging-caring-an-advance-lesson/ 

The research suggests that those who tend to use the approach inspired by Gandhi, when compared to those who tend to use “guilting,” provoke less covert and overt anger, are more liked and respected, and their requests are more likely to meet with compliance.

Jeff Rubin

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