Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context

In Social Work, the differentiated handling of emotions is of great importance, especially in the complex web of relationships between clients and service providers. This paper presents an integrative approach to the exploration and regulation of emotions in the context of client-provider relations...

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Main Authors: Nicole Syringa Harth, Diana Düring
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Social Work & Society 2025-04-01
Series:Social Work and Society
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ejournals.bib.uni-wuppertal.de/index.php/sws/article/view/1062
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author Nicole Syringa Harth
Diana Düring
author_facet Nicole Syringa Harth
Diana Düring
author_sort Nicole Syringa Harth
collection DOAJ
description In Social Work, the differentiated handling of emotions is of great importance, especially in the complex web of relationships between clients and service providers. This paper presents an integrative approach to the exploration and regulation of emotions in the context of client-provider relationships. It highlights the crucial, but still understudied role that emotions play and draws on insights from different perspectives, to illustrate their role in understanding social experiences and guiding practical interventions. We will focus on the emotions of guilt and shame and their interplay with facets of diversity, especially racism and poverty. Shame is known as a feeling that results from the perception of not living up to social norms and expectations. Guilt is related to shame but is more based in the perception of having done wrong. Thus, one aim of this paper is to identify diversity-related patterns on the inter-personal and organizational level that increase the risk of shaming and guilt among clients, but also service providers. We will highlight the theoretical, empirical but also practical issues regarding these emotions and emphasize the importance of diversity and cultural sensitivity in client-provider relationships.
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spelling doaj-art-e1d926ebb5204de29d232c38e6db1d332025-08-20T02:57:51ZengSocial Work & SocietySocial Work and Society1613-89532025-04-01222Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity contextNicole Syringa Harth0Diana Düring1Ernst-Abbe University of Applied ScienceErnst-Abbe University of Applied Sciences In Social Work, the differentiated handling of emotions is of great importance, especially in the complex web of relationships between clients and service providers. This paper presents an integrative approach to the exploration and regulation of emotions in the context of client-provider relationships. It highlights the crucial, but still understudied role that emotions play and draws on insights from different perspectives, to illustrate their role in understanding social experiences and guiding practical interventions. We will focus on the emotions of guilt and shame and their interplay with facets of diversity, especially racism and poverty. Shame is known as a feeling that results from the perception of not living up to social norms and expectations. Guilt is related to shame but is more based in the perception of having done wrong. Thus, one aim of this paper is to identify diversity-related patterns on the inter-personal and organizational level that increase the risk of shaming and guilt among clients, but also service providers. We will highlight the theoretical, empirical but also practical issues regarding these emotions and emphasize the importance of diversity and cultural sensitivity in client-provider relationships. https://ejournals.bib.uni-wuppertal.de/index.php/sws/article/view/1062Guiltshamesocial inequalityracismpoverty
spellingShingle Nicole Syringa Harth
Diana Düring
Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context
Social Work and Society
Guilt
shame
social inequality
racism
poverty
title Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context
title_full Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context
title_fullStr Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context
title_full_unstemmed Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context
title_short Understanding guilt, shame and social service use in a diversity context
title_sort understanding guilt shame and social service use in a diversity context
topic Guilt
shame
social inequality
racism
poverty
url https://ejournals.bib.uni-wuppertal.de/index.php/sws/article/view/1062
work_keys_str_mv AT nicolesyringaharth understandingguiltshameandsocialserviceuseinadiversitycontext
AT dianaduring understandingguiltshameandsocialserviceuseinadiversitycontext