The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between guilt
and adjustment after divorce. It was hypothesized divorced persons wh
o experienced high levels of guilt will experience lower levels of pos
t-divorce adjustment, as measured by depression, role strain, and cont
inuing attachment after divorce. The sample consisted of 29 men and 44
women, all of whom were presently divorced and had not been married t
o one another. The sample was drawn from self-help organizations in th
e southeastern part of the United States. Data were analyzed using cor
relations and multiple regression. Guilt correlated with both depressi
on and continuing attachment after divorce. Guilt was regressed agains
t a linear combination of depression, role strain, and attachment, but
only depression and attachment were significantly related to guilt.