The Affective Pathway to Moral Repair: Positive Experiences as a Mediator of the Prosocial Behavior-Guilt Relationship

Abstract

Objective: While extensive research has established that guilt motivates prosocial behavior (the guilt-reparation hypothesis), the reverse pathway—whether prosocial behavior subsequently reduces guilt—has received limited empirical attention. This study investigated whether positive experiences mediate the negative association between prosocial behavior and guilt among youth in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Methods: A cross-sectional correlational design was employed with 300 participants (150 university students, 150 college students; 50% female, 50% male; age range 15-30 years, M = 22.5, SD = 4.62) recruited from Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Participants completed the Prosocialness Scale for Adults (Caprara, Steca, & Zelli, 2005), the Scale of Positive and Negative Experiences (Diener et al., 2010), and the Guilt Sensitivity Scale (Tangney, Miller, Flicker, & Barlow, 1996). Mediation analyses employed bootstrapping with 5,000 resamples (Hayes, 2018). Three competing directional models were tested to examine which pathway best fit the data. Gender and student type were moderated in moderated mediation analyses.

Results: There was a negative relationship between guilt and prosocial behavior (r = -0.62, p < .001). This relationship was partially mediated by positive experiences (indirect effect = -0.27, 95% CI [-0.35, -0.20]) with 43.5 percent of the overall effect explained by positive experiences. The suggested model (prosocial → positive → guilt) best suited as compared to other directional specifications. Moderated mediation revealed stronger indirect effects for males (ab = -0.31, 95% CI [-0.39, -0.23]) than females (ab = -0.19, 95% CI [-0.27, -0.11]), and for university students (ab = -0.29, 95% CI [-0.37, -0.21]) compared to college students (ab = -0.21, 95% CI [-0.29, -0.13]).

Conclusion: The prosocial behavior is linked to a lower level of guilt based on more positive experiences and the impact is higher among males and university students in this collectivist setting. Results validate the Affective Pathway to Moral Repair model and inform culturally modified prosocial interventions to reduce guilt. Causal interpretations will be subject to validation in an experiment, given the nature of the cross-sectional design.