I’m working on a play about a woman who is challenged by moral scrupulosity OCD, a condition that affects sufferers in a variety of ways. My questions are, how does such a person react when faced with a moral dilemma at work? If the antagonist learns the hero suffers from scrupulosity, how can the antagonist overcome her objections to a murky action? If one does good only to relieve anxiety, is one really “doing good?”
Here are some commonly-seen manifestations of moral scrupulosity, according to a therapist:
Common manifestations of Moral Scrupulosity OCD
- Excessive concern with being 100% honest
- Excessive concern with the idea of being “good” or of not being “bad” (a so-called “good” person wouldn’t think or do xyz)
- Excessive concern with getting in trouble or breaking rules
- Excessive concern that a past act was immoral
- May include awareness of an actual moral misstep but with obsessive need to know exactly how much
- May include concern that others would reject you if they knew about it
- May include concern that a thought about an immoral act could be a memory of an immoral act that likely did not even occur
- Excessive concern that adultery or some disloyal act could have or did possibly take place
- Excessive concern that one has caused someone else to be immoral