Guilt

In psychology, the term Guilt refers to an emotion where an individual feels responsible for some action or inaction that is perceived as having negative results. The feeling of guilt, whether justified or not, can lead to many negative psychological symptoms.

For example, children often feel guilty about parental divorce, believing that it was somehow their fault that their parents split up. Until they learn to understand that they had no personal fault or blame in the situation this guilt can lead to a great deal of emotional fallout.