In recent years researchers have begun focusing attention on the emotions that might arise during or after child maltreatment. The articles in this journal issue focus in particular on the emotion of shame as a factor influencing the long-term recovery outcomes of child maltreatment survivors. Although the articles offer important insights about the contribution of shame to the recovery outcomes of maltreatment survivors, the results presented suggest that the relationship between shame and recovery outcomes is neither straightforward nor altogether consistent. The author asserts that the inconsistent results on the relationship between shame and recovery outcomes are due to inconsistencies in the definitions of shame and in the measurements used in these studies. Depending on how shame is defined and measured, it is possible to observe a variety of different associations between the two variables. Direct comparisons of the results contained in these articles are thus not possible due to the differences in definitions and measurements. Many questions remain to be answered and the articles presented here illuminate the importance of continuing research on the influence of emotion on the recovery process. Future research should especially focus on the effectiveness of targeting negative emotions in the treatment of child maltreatment. References