Hi James In Theravada, this teaching is very important. If you wish to do some research on the subject, search for the words "hiri ottappa" on the internet. The Buddha advised hiri and ottoppa were two of the "five gates" for entry into dhamma, the other three being mindfulness (sati), clear comprehension (sampajanna) and concentration (samadhi). The two words are generally used as the compound "hiri ottappa". Hiri is sense of shame, ottappa is fear of [the results of doing] evil. A more positive modern rendering is 'conscience & concern'. Kind regards Element