Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Confession" in English language version.
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Confession is also a pillar of mental health, for confession is about self-examination. It demands something for which there is no substitute: that we be honest with ourselves.
[...] there is no evidence, either in the available documents or in Wang Hongwen's shallow personality, to suggest he arrived at his confession through a searching self-examination in the manner of Nikolai Bukharin's elaborately conceived philosophical confession presented in his Stalin-era show trial.
During a 'study' session, the person receiving criticism usually makes a substantial verbal response of some sort. [...] In contrast, objects of a struggle session are typically expected to bow their heads contritely, bend forward at the waist, and succinctly confess their guilt [ren zui]. [...] The required parts of the struggle session ritual include the stage or platform where the bowed objects of the struggle stand contritely next to gesticulating and slogan-shouting cadres or other leaders, along with the audience seated nearby, who parrot the slogans in a shouted refrain. For example, Song Shan remarks that all seventy-six times she was subjected to a struggle session in front of thousands of people, the format of the event was exactly the same.
[...] through self-criticism, social control over individual behavior or conduct operates by virtue of the social origin and basis of such criticism. That is to say, self-criticism is essentially social criticism, and behavior controlled by self-criticism is essentiall behavior controlled socially.
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Confession also occurs outside religious institutions. Within political systems that actively discourage religion, such as offshoots of Marxism, forms of confession or self-criticism are fostered.