4th Step – Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves
Suggested Reading Assignments:
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Alcoholics Anonymous (The Big Book) - How it Works, Pages 63 - 71
Twelve Steps & Twelve Traditions - Step 4
Big Book, page 63 “Next we launched out on a course of vigorous action, the first step of which is a
personal housecleaning, which many of us had never attempted. Though our decision was a vital and
crucial step, it could have little permanent effect unless at once followed by a strenuous effort to face,
and to be rid of, the things in ourselves which had been blocking us. Our liquor was but a symptom. So
we had to get down to causes and conditions.
Resentment is the "number one" offender. It destroys more alcoholics than anything else. From it stem
all forms of spiritual disease, for we have been not only mentally and physically ill, we have been
spiritually sick. When the spiritual malady is overcome, we straighten out mentally and physically.”
Breaking down the word resentment:
Resentment
“re” means “again”, and
sentir "to feel or experience"; from the Latin "sentire
Resentment is re-feeling any old, negative emotion: anger, pain, disappointment, etc…
Having an emotional response to something that is not happening in the present moment.
First Column: We list people, institutions or principals with whom we are angry.
Resentment Prompt Sheet:
PEOPLE
 Father (Step)
 Mother (Step)
 Sisters (Step)
 Brothers (Step)
 Grandmother/Grandfather
 In-Laws
 Husbands/Wives
 Aunts/Uncles
 Clergy
 Police
 Lawyers
 Judges
 Doctors
 Employer's
 Co-Workers
 Childhood Friends
 Teachers
 Girl Friends/Boy Friends
INSTITUTIONS
 Marriage
 Bible
 Church
 Religion
 Races
 Law
 Authority
 Government
 Education System
 Correctional System
 Mental Health System
 Philosophy
 Nationality
 _______________
 _______________
also added to the list could
be:
 Rehabs
PRINCIPLES
 God-Deity
 Retribution
 Ten Commandments
 Jesus Christ
 Satan
 Death
 Life After Death
 Heaven
 Hell
 Sin
 Adultery
 Golden Rule
 Seven Deadly Sins
 _______________
 _______________
 _______________
 _______________
 _______________
Questions about the first column:
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Can I put myself in the first column? You can, but you should wait and until you have finished all 4
inventories. You will learn more by examining your defects in columns 3, 4 & 5
Can someone appear more than once? Of course.
How do I know who to put? Before you start, ask your higher power to show you who and what you
need to include, and then put who and whatever comes to mind down in the first column.
Second Column: On our grudge list we set opposite each name our injuries.
2 things are happening:
• I’m organizing my thinking by writing it down
• I’m leaving an outline for my 5th Step
It’s important to follow the example in the book and write short bullet points.
It’s an inventory not a novel!
Look at each name in the first column and write bullet points about what the resentment is. You will have time
to talk at length about it in Step 5, but for now keep it simple and short.
Third Column: We asked ourselves why we were angry…
We are upset because the things we listed in the second column are threatening in one or more areas of
Column 3:
Self Esteem – How I think of myself
Emotional Security – General sense of well being
Pocketbook – Basic desire for money, property, possessions…
Ambition – Our goals, plans and designs for the future
Personal Relations – Our relations with other people
Sex Relations – Basic drive for sexual intimacy
Pride – How I think others see me
So we look at what we wrote in the second column and ask ourselves “Did this affect my self-esteem? My
emotional security? Pocketbook? Ambitions? Personal or sex relations? My pride? If so, put a check next to
the affected area.
3 Levels of Spiritual Existence –
Dependence - Independence - Interdependence
Dependence is when I am dependent on the world, its people and things going a certain way for my
ability to be ok or to feel safe.
Everyone in early recovery is in a state of dependence – trying to get our third column needs met by
the world.
Don’t be surprised if you check most or all of the items in the Third Column – that’s what being in a state of
dependence looks like.
Column 4 – My Part
Putting out of our minds the wrongs others had done, we resolutely looked for our own
mistakes.
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How did I put myself in a position to be hurt?
o Did I spend time with someone who has hurt me before and let them do it again? Did I do
something wrong and now I’m resentful at someone for telling people?
How did I use their wrong to justify my wrongs?
o Oftentimes we are wronged by others, and then we use their wrongs as justification for our
own behaviors.
Some things I didn’t have a part in – things that happen in childhood - or trauma, or violence. I didn’t
have a part on those things
o If I come across something like this I can just put an “X” in the 4th column.
o I didn’t have a part, but it may still be affecting my behavior today, so it’s worth including. I may
find current behavior in other resentments, fears or sexual behaviors that I can trace back to it.
Column 5 – Character Defects
Where had we been selfish, dishonest, self-seeking, frightened, inconsiderate and unrealistic?
Looking at my actions in column 4, were they:
Selfish? Dishonest? Self-seeking? Frightened? Inconsiderate? Unrealistic?
I am just putting check marks next to the defects that I believe caused the actions in the 4 th column. These are
the exact nature of my wrongs. These are what I will be entirely ready for my Higher Power to remove in Steps
6 & 7.
Other inventories:
Fear Inventory
“We reviewed our fears thoroughly. We put them on paper, even though we had no resentment in connection
with them. “
• The fear inventory is arranged just like the resentment inventory.
• Some people and things may appear on both
• Mostly it’s for fears I have no resentment associated with.
The fear inventory helps me examine how my fears are causing me to take ineffective actions. Once I know the
exact nature of the wrongs that are driving my actions I can begin to ask my higher power to help me act in a
new, more effective way.
Sex Inventory
The sex inventory is here so that we can examine our behavior in this area and look at the things we are trying
to get from sex and relationships (in our third column) that don’t actually come from sex or relationships.
Harms Inventory
This inventory is a catch-all at the end. It contains things I did that I feel badly about that had no resentment,
fear or sex associated with them.
How long does a 4th step take?
4th step math:
• 120 items (resentments, fears, sex inventory and harms – more than you’ll do)
• 30 pages (4 per page)
• 300 minutes (30 pages x 10 min per page)
• 5 hours.
For most of you it will take 30 minutes a day for a week.