[Psychometric properties of the French version of the Guilt Inventory]

the feeling of guilt is essential to a interpersonal functioning but can also play a role in self-destructive. Although there is about 20 guilt scales in English, none has yet been validated in French. This study intends to fill this gap by proposing a French version of the Guilt Inventory (GI) that evaluates trait guilt, state guilt, and moral standards.

seven hundred and thirty-eight students filled GI in French as well as scales measuring trait anxiety and state anxiety, and empathy skills. In a sample subgroup, we also evaluated depression, social desirability, and personality factors.

an exploratory factor analysis conducted on half of the participants resulted in keeping 18 of 20 items in trait GI, and 9 of 10 items in state GI, but also in disregarding the moral standard scale. A confirmatory factor analysis performed on the sample other half has validated this two-factor structure. The expected correlations between guilt scores, negative affectivity and interpersonal functioning were observed.

this study suggests that the GI French version is an adequate measure of trait guilt and state guilt, and could prove to be a useful tool for both research and clinical purposes.