Guilt is an emotion associated with being remorseful. We scrutinize ourselves against an internally established code of conduct and may find that it becomes necessary to feel guilt for something said, done or possibly even thought. Guilt can be an incredibly powerful emotion with very little tangible reason as to why it should be. The following material deals with the source of this emotion and pursues potential reasons for it's power. Hopefully this will remove some of the shroud of ambiguity surrounding the mechanism of guilt while leading to practical methods of resolving this emotion.
             Before we can experience the sensation of guilt there must exist a foundation to establish its necessity. The source of this foundation comes from the interaction with every other person in our lives. Throughout our lifetime we are instilled with a code of conduct. Initially we are totally dependent on primary care givers to establish the expected protocol. Environmental situations present an initiative to synthesize an extended protocol as our experiences involving more people expand our sphere of social interaction and we culturally mature.
             Motivation for adhering to the code of conduct range from deterrents with known reprimand to rational attractions with known rewards. Following the complete cycle of any particular aspect of the code of conduct educates and conditions the individual to respect it. We can use extrapolation of previous experiences to visualize the consequences of the code of conduct to decide weather a raw, untried venture would be beneficial or detrimental.
             Ultimately, however, it can be said that the primary purpose of the code of conduct is to promote predictable and mutually beneficial social interaction which is conducive to the survival of the both individual within the group and the entire group. The primary purpose of the code of conduct is not an overt feature of it. We become more familiar with the code in terms of ...