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Brands invest tremendous resources into building engagement with their customers on social media. But considerably less focus is placed on addressing disengagement, when users actively choose to distance themselves from the brand through reduced posting or even unfollowing. The authors find that the same self–brand connections that lead individuals to defensively protect the brand can also lead them to experience shame vicariously when others mention the brand in socially unacceptable ways. Experiencing vicarious shame motivates them to distance themselves from the brand, driving disengagement. Three mixed-method studies show that a socially unacceptable behavior—using profanity while mentioning the brand—leads highly connected consumers to experience vicarious shame, prompting disengagement motivations and ultimately leading to real-world unfollowing behaviors on social media. The authors also show that proactive moderation behaviors by the brand can attenuate these responses. These results provide insight into the process by which self–brand connection interacts with socially unacceptable brand mentions and suggest a limitation to the insulating effects of strong self–brand connections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Grounded in Control-Value Theory, this study aimed to investigate the relationships between emotional antecedents (control-value beliefs) and emotions with students' perceived self-esteem and physical activity intention. In addition, the potential differences in antecedents, emotions, and outcomes by gender were explored. Method: Multivariate analysis of variance and multiple hierarchical regressions were used to explore self-reported responses from middle school students (N = 247; 51% male, 49% female). Results: Preliminary analysis showed males reporting higher levels of intrinsic value, enjoyment, and self-esteem, while females reported more boredom and shame in PE. Control beliefs and intrinsic value were maintained as positive significant predictors (p <.05) of self-esteem and physical activity intention. Emotions of boredom and shame were significant predictors above any positive reported emotions for negatively impacting self-esteem and physical activity intention. Discussion/Conclusion: Emotions and their antecedents need consideration for understanding student motivation, particularly for female students who are more vulnerable to negative PE experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the differences in shame, perception of performance, the need to present a perfect body image, and disordered eating among 223 female athletes from esthetic (n = 114; Mage = 14.30; SDage = 1.65; Myearsofpractice = 6.62) and nonesthetic (n = 109; Mage = 14.75; SDage = 1.87; Myearsofpractice = 4.56) individual sports. Descriptive, t test, and correlational analyses were performed. Moreover, path analyses were conducted to examine the link between the variables. The two groups did not present significant differences in variables, except in perception of performance. The path model analyses explained 47% of disordered eating. Results suggested that individual characteristic of sports practice seems relevant in shame. This study suggests that female athletes from individual sports who experience inferiority tend to adopt perfectionist defensive strategies and engage in disordered eating behaviors. This study highlights the relevance of intervention and educational programs that promote more adaptative emotional regulation strategies in female athletes from individual sports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a proposed mediator between stigma-related stressors and negative mental health outcomes, HIV-related shame has been predictive of increased rates of substance use and difficulties adhering to antiretroviral treatment among people with HIV. These downstream manifestations have ultimately impeded progress toward national goals to End the HIV Epidemic, in part due to limited success of conventional psychotherapies in addressing HIV-related shame. In a pilot clinical trial (N = 12), receipt of psilocybin-assisted group therapy was associated with a large pre-post decrease in HIV-related shame as measured by the HIV and Abuse Related Shame Inventory, with a median (IQR) change of - 5.5 (- 6.5, - 3.5) points from baseline to 3-months follow-up (Z = - 2.6, p = 0.009, r = - 0.75). A paradoxical exacerbation of sexual abuse-related shame experienced by two participants following receipt of psilocybin raises critical questions regarding the use of psilocybin therapy among patients with trauma. These preliminary findings carry potential significance for the future of HIV care.

ObjectiveTransgender and gender diverse (TGD) people experience higher levels of stigma, discrimination, and interpersonal violence due to their gender identity and/or expression, particularly TGD people with a migration background. This study aimed to conduct and evaluate group psychotherapy for TGD migrants to provide opportunities for exploring and developing interpersonal skills and relationships.MethodThe group therapy included five individuals who identified as TGD and originated from the Middle East. The TGD group therapy consisted of 12 weekly sessions of 90 minutes each and was facilitated by a psychiatrist. All sessions were conducted online and in Turkish. The sessions were guided by the group process and discussions.ResultsAfter completing 12 group therapy sessions, members of the group reported benefiting from observing and emulating others who shared their problem constellation. Through the interpersonal skills that they built up throughout the sessions, they became more open to share their feelings experiencing fewer social barriers, and reduced anxiety.ConclusionThis observational study indicates the significance of offering group-based psychotherapy to enhance affirmation and social connection within gender minority groups and emphasizes the need to empirically evaluate the effectiveness of group psychotherapy with TGD individuals, with special attention to the unique needs of TGD migrants.

Understanding the politics of famine is crucial to understanding why famines still occur. A key part of this is how famine is remembered, understood, and discussed. This paper focuses on songs popular among communities that have recently experienced deadly famine. Contemporary famines almost always manifest in armed conflict contexts, where there is limited political freedom. Here, songs and music can be an important way to debate sensitive political issues. This paper focuses on the way that songs and music shape ‘regimes of truth’ around famine, and who is shamed and held accountable for associated suffering. It is based on long‐term ethnographic research, the recordings of famine‐related songs, and collaborative analysis in Jonglei and Warrap States (South Sudan) in 2021–24. The paper shows how songs can mock soldiers for their seizing of assets during times of hunger and how they can create familial shame for famine suffering, shifting responsibility away from the real causes to family members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mindfulness plays an important role in reducing post‐traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and promoting posttraumatic growth (PTG) among traumatized populations. However, the mechanism at the emotional level has not been fully examined. Thus, we aimed to investigate the possible mediating roles of trauma‐related shame and guilt. A total of 814 college students (Mage = 19.55, SD = 1.89) with traumatic experiences in China were recruited. Traumatic experiences, mindfulness, trauma‐related shame, and trauma‐related guilt were assessed in the first survey. Six months later, PTSS and PTG were assessed in the second survey. Structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis indicated that mindfulness was associated with less PTSS through shame and guilt. However, though directly associated with more PTG, mindfulness could also negatively predict PTG by evoking less guilt. Mindfulness can be a way to cope with traumatic experiences and related psychological consequences. However, although mindfulness can reduce PTSS by suppressing negative trauma‐related shame and guilt, it can also limit the realization of PTG by inhibiting the adaptive sides of these emotions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bisexual (i.e. those with attraction to multiple genders) women experience disparities in sexual violence and mental health outcomes, including PTSD, depression, and hazardous drinking, compared to lesbian and heterosexual women. Unique stigma due to bisexual identity (antibisexual stigma), negative reactions to sexual violence (SV) disclosure (e.g. victim blaming), and prior child sexual abuse (CSA) may all contribute to shame. We tested whether shame explained the associations of antibisexual stigma, negative reactions to SV disclosure, and CSA severity with PTSD symptoms, depression, and hazardous drinking among young bisexual women. Participants who self-identified as bisexual women, between the ages of 18–35, residing in the US were recruited via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and completed online questionnaires. Women who reported SV since age 18 that they disclosed to someone were included in the current study, yielding a sample of 156 bisexual women (Mage = 25.7; 98.1% cisgender, 86.5% White). Path analysis with bias-corrected bootstrapping was conducted. There were significant direct effects of negative reactions on hazardous drinking and CSA on PTSD, and direct effects of shame on PTSD and depression symptoms. Shame explained the associations of antibisexual stigma, negative reactions, and CSA with PTSD symptoms, depression symptoms, and hazardous drinking. Shame may explain why stigmatizing experiences related to bisexual identity, sexual violence, and CSA history relate to distress among bisexual women. Shame is an important treatment target among bisexual survivors of SV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to sexual violence is associated with deleterious mental health consequences, and survivors' perceptions of self-blame can exacerbate these difficulties. Characterological self-blame (CSB) has been associated with negative outcomes (e.g., PTSD, depression, & anxiety). However, the underlying mechanisms that account for CSB's negative impacts have not been explored despite the stigmatizing and blaming nature surrounding sexual violence. In the present study, we examined whether trauma-related shame would explain CSB's association with depression and anxiety symptom severity. A sample of 197 women who reported prior exposure to sexual assault completed measures of self-blame, trauma-related shame, and depression and anxiety symptoms. A significant association was found between CSB and depression, r(197) =.380, p <.01, and anxiety, r(197) =.256, p <.01. Trauma-related shame significantly mediated the relationship between CSB and depression (B =.07, SE =.02, 95% CI [.03,.12]), and mediated between CSB and anxiety (B =.05, SE =.02, 95% CI [.01,.09]). Trauma-related shame may be a useful treatment target for survivors of sexual assault experiencing maladaptive blame and psychological distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evidence on how persons with and in remission from an eating disorder experience their oral health is limited. Dental treatment in Sweden today is often postponed until medical rehabilitation has been completed, but this carries risks. For the patient, the risk is severely impaired oral health and additional suffering, and for both society and the patient, higher costs than might have been necessary. Methods: Ten female informants aged 21–51 years (mean age = 36.7, standard deviation 12.7) in remission from an eating disorder with a median duration of 12.5 (range 4–25) years of illness, were questioned in semi-structured interviews about their perceptions of oral health. All participants had been referred to a specialist dental clinic and needed oral rehabilitation. 10% of the patients had been diagnosed with anorexia nervosa and 90% with bulimia nervosa. All had been in remission from the eating disorder for at least one year. Transcripts of the interviews were analyzed with thematic analysis using an inductive approach. Results: One overarching theme emerged from the analysis: dental damage persisted as a visible, lingering scar during remission of the eating disorder, reminiscent of the disease and its consequences. The three major themes identified were (1) Physical impact, (2) Psychological impact, and (3) Impact on daily living. The first major theme included erosive tooth wear and impaired oral function and aesthetics. Interviewees described the second as feelings of stigma, guilt, shame, anxiety, and worry, in particular concerning self-inflicted dental damage through self-induced vomiting. The last major theme covered avoidance strategies such as limiting smiling and laughing and minimizing social situations such as eating with others, pursuing a wanted career, and meeting a partner. Conclusions: The participants in this study expressed a profound negative impact on daily life and a two-fold burden of stigma of having suffered from both an eating disorder and poor oral health. Plain English summary: Research has established a link between eating disorders and poor oral health, such as erosive tooth wear. One knowledge gap, however, is how patients with and after recovery from an eating disorder experience their oral health. In Sweden, dental treatment is often postponed until after medical rehabilitation, but this carries risks. For the patient, the risk is severely impaired oral health and additional suffering, and for both society and the patient, higher costs than might have been necessary. The self-reports of the patients in their interviews witnessed to their suffering from two sources: the diagnosis of a mental disorder and poor oral health. Many reported feelings of stigma, shame, and guilt over, for example, self-induced vomiting, which was a predominant factor in dental damage. Tooth damage emerged as a visible, lingering scar that reminded the patient of the disease long after remission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workplace ostracism is a prevalent and painful experience. The majority of studies focus on negative outcomes of ostracism, with less work examining employees' potential adaptive responses to it. Further, scholars have suggested that such responses depend on employee attributions, yet little research has taken an attributional perspective on workplace ostracism. Drawing on sociometer theory and attribution theory we develop and test a model that investigates why and under what circumstances ostracized employees engage in adaptive responses to ostracism. Specifically, we argue that ostracized employees feel greater levels of shame and, in turn, are motivated to engage in greater ingratiation behavior toward their ostracizers. However, we predict that perceptions of ostracizers' competence and warmth shape different attributional processes, which influence the degree to which the ostracized employee experience shame and, in turn, is motivated to engage in ingratiation behavior. Results of a three-wave, time-lagged survey support our prediction that shame mediates the relationship between coworker ostracism and ingratiation behavior. Moreover, results support our three-way interaction, such that coworkers who report higher levels of ostracism and who perceive their coworkers as more (vs. less) competent and more (vs. less) warm report higher shame, and, in turn, ingratiation behavior. Theoretical and practical implications, as well as avenues for future research, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The construct of “moral injury” is used widely in the research literature and media to broadly describe the impact of events involving perceived violations of one’s sense of right and wrong (herein referred to as “potentially morally injurious events” [PMIEs]). Summary: In this theoretical review, we provided a brief overview of the “moral injury” construct and its limitations including the lack of consensus-drawn boundaries and operational definitions to guide hypothesis-driven research. We discussed whether this construct can be reliably distinguished from established psychiatric diagnoses and psychological constructs and the inherent challenges in separating or classifying the impact of high-magnitude stressful life events that likely form the majority of PMIEs. Assessments that purportedly measure “moral injury” are reviewed and limitations are discussed such as shared measurement variance with established psychological instruments. Key Messages: We identified conceptual strategies for investigating behavioral and neurobiological features of PMIEs that could be used to inform the field of traumatic stress. We concluded that the construct of “moral injury” may provide an interpretive framework for positing why someone may be beset by guilt, shame, and/or rage whereas existing psychiatric diagnoses such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression provide comprehensive descriptions regarding what someone might experience following extremely stressful events. We proposed directions to better clarify the boundaries of “moral injury” versus established psychiatric categories that could be used to enhance the conceptualization and assessment of this construct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine the co-occurrence of alcohol misuse and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and potential sources of coping (e.g., spirituality/religion) and clinically relevant variables among first responders (e.g., firefighters, law enforcement corrections officers, paramedics). Method: We assessed rates of independent and co-occurring alcohol misuse and PTSD among a national online sample of 320 first responders as well as the prevalence and salience of S/R, guilt, shame, moral injury, aspects of S/R, and treatment interest. Results: In our sample, 46.88% (n = 150) met criteria for comorbid alcohol misuse and probable PTSD and individuals with these comorbid conditions reported significantly greater negative religious coping, moral injury, and shame than all other diagnostic groups (i.e., independent alcohol misuse, independent PTSD, and neither). Correlations also revealed significant relationships between alcohol misuse and PTSD symptomatology with positive and negative religious coping, moral injury, shame, guilt, interest in treatment, and interest in spiritually integrated treatment. Conclusions: Findings highlight the high rates of independent and co-occurring alcohol misuse and PTSD among first responders as well as the salience of S/R in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging evidence indicates that perceptions of self-harm behaviours and self-harm scars may thwart recovery from depression, yet limited research has explored adolescent accounts of their self-harm and scars during therapy. This study sought to explore how adolescents describe their self-harm behaviours and scars during Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and explore the sociocultural discourses that may influence these descriptions. The participants were six female adolescents (aged 14-17 years old) with clinical depression, who were engaging in self-harm. All participants accessed CBT as part of clinical trial evaluating three psychological treatments for major depressive disorder in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Audio-taped CBT sessions were analyzed using discourse analysis. Within CBT sessions, adolescents drew upon stigma discourses in talking about their self-harm. Adolescent also described their self-harm scars as shameful and stigmatizing, and as "proof" of the legitimacy of their depression. It is important for CBT practitioners to understand the context of sociocultural discourses around self-harm behaviours and self-harm scars, which are reflected in how adolescents with depression describe these within therapy and may serve to maintain distress. The study indicates that awareness of use of language and intersecting sociocultural discourses can inform CBT practice. Plain language summary: We know that when teenagers are in treatment for depression, perceptions of their self-harming behaviours and self-harm scars can impact recovery. We also know that wider sociocultural beliefs around self-harm tend to be negative and stigmatizing, which might impact how teenagers perceive their self-harm and scars. This study aimed to explore how depressed adolescents talk about their self-harm behaviours and their self-harm scars during therapy for depression. The participants in this study were six female teenagers (aged 14-17 years old) with depression, who were engaging in self-harm. These teenagers participated in a type of therapy called Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy as a part of a larger study evaluating treatments for teenage depression in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in the UK. The therapy sessions were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed with a focus on the language used by the teenagers to describe their self-harm and scars. Within the therapy sessions, the teenagers talked about their self-harm in stigmatizing ways, which reflected prominent societal-held beliefs about self-harm. The teenagers in the study also believed that while their self-harm scars were shameful and stigmatizing, the scars also provided a sense of validation that their depression was legitimate. The findings of this study suggest that it could be helpful for therapists to consider how wider sociocultural beliefs around self-harm may impact how teenagers talk about their self-harm and scars in treatment for depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we assessed the construct validity of the recently published White Racial Affect Scale (Grzanka et al., 2020). Specifically, we assessed the convergent, criterion-related, and incremental evidence for construct validity of the White guilt, White shame, and White defensiveness (called "White negation" in the original article) factors. We used a video stimulus to trigger state guilt and shame in participants as part of the construct validity investigation. White adults in the United States signed up for the study online (N = 262) and watched a 5-min video stimulus and completed questionnaires before and after the video. Results of this study replicated many of the findings from the original White Racial Affect Scale validation study (Grzanka et al., 2020). We found strong evidence of construct validity for the White guilt and White defensiveness factors and mixed evidence for the White shame factor. We discuss directions for future research and implications for potential interventions. Public Significance Statement: This article provides further construct validity evidence for the factors in the White Racial Affect Scale (Grzanka et al., 2020). Possible implications include the need for interventions that address a mix of guilt and shame in White individuals engaging in racial justice work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces the integrated behavioral model of mental health help seeking (IBM-HS), a theoretical model for understanding the constructs (e.g., systemic, predisposing, and enabling factors; mental health literacy; illness perceptions; perceived need; stigma; shame; perceived benefits, motivation) that influence people's decision making around seeking professional mental health care and their ultimate access to formal treatment. The IBM-HS is a help-seeking-specific adaptation of the empirically supported integrated behavioral model and integrative model, which are themselves evolutions of the theory of planned behavior and theory of reasoned action. The IBM-HS posits that help-seeking determinants (e.g., structural forces; cultural influences; past help-seeking experience; evaluated need; mental health perceptions, knowledge, and skills; social support) influence help-seeking beliefs (i.e., outcome beliefs, experiential beliefs, beliefs about others' expectations, beliefs about others' behavior, logistical beliefs), which in turn determine their respective help-seeking mechanisms (i.e., attitude, perceived norm, personal agency). These mechanisms collectively influence help-seeking intention, which drives prospective help-seeking behavior, subject to the moderating effects of determinants. Finally, prospective behavior has reciprocal feedback loop effects on certain determinants and beliefs. This article describes the need for the IBM-HS, the model's constructs and their interrelations, measurement considerations, and how the model can be used by scholarly and applied users to systematically understand people's intention to seek professional mental health care services and what helps or hinders them from utilizing this care. Public Significance Statement: The integrated behavioral model of mental health help seeking offers users a robust framework for understanding the things that help or hinder a person from seeking mental health care. This article describes the model and how to use it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contexts where schooling is delivered through a language of instruction (LoI) that is unfamiliar to learners, it has repeatedly been observed that students are reluctant to speak, passive, or even silent. This is commonly attributed to lack of understanding of the language in use in the classroom. Although this is, undoubtedly, an important part of the explanation, this paper presents findings from a thematic analysis of lesson observations, interviews, and ethnographic field-notes from two secondary schools in Tanzania to argue that we should also be paying much closer attention to the socio-emotional environment. Specifically, this paper demonstrates the prevalence of feelings of fear and shame in students' experiences of learning and how these emotions contributed to students' silence. However, it also shows that the impact of these emotions was not the same for all students. Informal classroom 'rules' were found to govern how different groups of students were expected to behave in response to questions from teachers, meaning that the risks of speaking English were greater for some students than others. As such, the prevalence of fear and shame is argued to compound existing inequalities amongst students, thus hindering progress towards equitable, inclusive and safe education for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: South Asian U.S. college students experience socialization from South Asian cultures they grew up with and White culture outside the South Asian community. The present study considers that the ways of navigating two conflicting cultures and experiences of shame are associated with anxiety and life satisfaction among South Asian U.S. college students. Method: An anonymous survey, distributed to 271 South Asian students (mean age = 22, 38.2% male, 59.2% female, 2.3% nonbinary), quantitively assessed how bicultural stress and shame are related to anxiety and life satisfaction. Open-ended questions asked students to describe experiences of bicultural identity stressors and shame. Results: Survey results indicated bicultural stress and shame as predictors of anxiety and lower life satisfaction. Thematic analysis of open-ended question responses revealed experienced stressors related to academics, finances, family expectations, and fitting in. Shame experiences were tied to bicultural stress and family and self-imposed expectations of participants. Conclusions: There is a need to further investigate the relationships found in the present study and explore ways to support South Asian students experiencing bicultural stress and shame. Public Significance Statement: Shame experiences and challenges balancing bicultural identity were predictors of anxiety and lower life satisfaction among South Asian college students in the United States. The findings suggest the need to further explore the role of bicultural stress and shame and interventions to better support students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little empirical research exists on attributions that people make regarding work-family conflict that they experience. Our study used attribution theory to examine the aftermath of work-family conflict episodes. We used a diary method in which respondents reported their daily encounters with work-family conflict, attributions they made about its causes, feelings of guilt and shame they experienced, and their levels of daily family engagement and well-being after work. Based on Ilies et al. (2012) we hypothesized that internal attributions of work-family conflict would be associated with feelings of guilt and shame, and that these emotions would in turn be differentially associated with daily after-work outcomes. We also hypothesized that the degree to which individuals were satisfied with the resolution of their work-family conflict would moderate the relationship between internal attribution and guilt/shame. Results largely supported our hypotheses, with guilt demonstrating a positive link to family engagement while shame showed a negative association. We also found that shame, but not guilt, was negatively associated with daily well-being. One's level of satisfaction with the resolution of work-family conflict emerged as a key variable as well. Lastly, we discuss the theoretical and practical ramifications of our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the exposure of incest's widespread prevalence, challenging long-held misconceptions about its rarity and social stratification. Topics include the historical secrecy surrounding incest, the role of second-wave feminism in uncovering its frequency across all social classes, and the involvement of family members in criminal sexual exploitation and trafficking.

Victims of traumatic events that involve repeated interpersonal aggression and low or no chance of escape frequently report intense Self-Conscious Emotions (SCEs), such as Shame, Guilt, and Humiliation. Humiliation is the reaction to a forced loss of status and is hypothesized to have unique contributions to the development and maintenance of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD). However, previous studies did not include humiliation or did not simultaneously probe the relative contribution of each SCE to posttraumatic symptoms. This study aimed to investigate the dynamics between specific SCEs and trauma-related symptomatology in the general population who suffered a form of complex trauma. Four hundred forty-nine people (77.11% women) exposed to domestic violence and sexual abuse answered an online survey. We investigated whether each emotion would accurately predict probable PTSD and CPTSD levels above the proposed cutoff. We estimated a network model to understand the dynamics of their interactions and whether the traumatic event type would moderate relationships between SCEs and posttraumatic stress symptoms, comparing networks of two types of complex trauma. No SCE predicted PTSD, but humiliation was a predictor of CPTSD while controlling for Shame and Guilt. Humiliation was also the most central SCE domain in the networks of both traumatic events. Our results stress the relevance of Humiliation to understanding posttraumatic stress symptoms and the necessity to consider humiliation when studying the emotional processing in complex trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the case of Min Joshua Chung, an ordained pastor who was found guilty of sexual misconduct but has since been restored to ministry within the Presbyterian Church in America. The author examines the concept of holiness and how it has been misused to perpetuate patterns of sexual and spiritual abuse, particularly within Asian American Christian communities. The article argues that the theological justifications used to forgive and restore Chung's power while silencing and marginalizing the victim-survivors are deeply flawed and rooted in heteropatriarchal norms. The author calls for a reexamination of the concept of holiness and the development of a theo-ethical framework that prioritizes justice and love. [Extracted from the article]

This research explores the self-perceived impact of parental suicide in adolescence, of a father, on his daughter's intimate, heterosexual relationships in adulthood. The aim of the research was to ascertain if, and how, paternal suicide, in a young woman's adolescence, affects her intimate, heterosexual relationships, in adulthood. Four participants who had lost their fathers to suicide between the ages of 10 and 19, were interviewed, and transcripts were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The findings conclude that the majority of participants had experienced difficulties in establishing intimate relationships that fully met their needs. Participants perceived these factors were directly linked to their suicide loss. Four main group experiential themes arose from the data: isolation; connection with self and others; post-traumatic stress; and anxiety and shame. This research raises awareness for counsellors and helping professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research is developing regarding the beneficial association of spirituality with numerous health outcomes in people living with HIV (PLWH); however, little attention has been paid to the association of these variables with forgiveness and acceptance of HIV status. This cross-sectional study used a sample of 648 PLWH from the United States aged 18–61 to test the mediating effects of forgiveness and acceptance of HIV status on the relationship of spirituality and life satisfaction. As expected, self-forgiveness and acceptance straightforwardly and serially explained the links between spirituality and life satisfaction, while forgiveness of others was not a significant mediator for this relationship. The data obtained suggest that spirituality and self-forgiveness are two important targets for future experimental research, and therapeutic interventions on these variables may have a synergistic effect of increasing acceptance and improving well-being in PLWH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shame-proneness refers to one's dispositional tendency to experience shame across a variety of situations. Shame-proneness is significantly related to a wide range of mental health disorders including depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, substance abuse, and more. Attachment theory and interpersonal neurobiology suggest that secure attachment protects against shame-proneness, whereas insecure attachment contributes to shame-proneness. However, there is scant empirical research exploring this relationship. This study explored childhood attachment with primary caregivers as a predictor of shame-proneness in adulthood. A sample of 340 adults, U.S. residents aged 18 and over, was recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk), an online crowdsourcing platform. Multiple regression analyses revealed that certain insecure attachment styles, specifically anxiety and disorganization, significantly related to shame-proneness, whereas avoidance did not. Secure attachment was negatively related to shame-proneness, but the relationship was statistically insignificant. Social workers and other mental health professionals can benefit from an increased understanding of the relationship between childhood attachment and shame-proneness that this study provides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enduring psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is a subject of growing concern. Despite existing research highlighting immediate challenges, there is a lack of comprehensive studies elucidating specific pathways through which psychological variables contribute to the pandemic's long-lasting implications. Through a network analysis approach, we aimed to investigate the mutual relationships and associations between eating disorder symptoms, guilt- and shame-proneness, psychopathological symptoms, self-esteem, defence mechanisms, and mentalization and understand how they might interact two years after the pandemic's outbreak. From March to August 2022, 651 Italian young adults (females = 593, 91.1%) aged between 18 and 38 (Mage = 23.84, SD = 3.74) were recruited online and completed a digital booklet of self-report questionnaires. A weighted, undirected graphical LASSO network was performed to investigate the structure of the nodes. A stable and accurate network structure showed that the most interconnected nodes were psychoticism, interpersonal sensitivity, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, depression, anxiety, paranoid ideation, and immature defences, suggesting their central role in the network functioning. Findings emphasized the enduring psychological impact of the pandemic, elucidating the complex interplay and dynamic impact of key psychopathological symptoms and defence mechanisms. The network tested also provides valuable insights for developing targeted interventions and effective strategies to address post-pandemic mental health challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The journey from shame to pride has been described as a founding and essential part of the modern LGBTQ movement. However, the tendency to treat shame as something that belongs to the past has been criticized by a number of queer theorists. The struggle to secure equal rights through normalization has also meant that certain topics that risk demonizing and stigmatizing LGBTQ people further have been neglected. Intimate partner violence (IPV) in queer relationships is one such topic. This paper explores a new perspective on queer shame through the topic of IPV in lesbian and queer relationships. Methods: Drawing on qualitative interviews with 25 people who have experienced violence in intimate lesbian/queer relationships in Sweden, this paper unpacks the concept of shame in empirical data to examine how shame operates on different levels when it comes to victimization and how it affects the help-seeking processes of such victim-survivors. Results: Many of the interviewees expressed that they continued to feel ashamed about their denial of violence or their own reactions to the abuse even years after the relationship had ended. An additional layer of shame and secrecy affected the violence and help-seeking processes for the interviewees' who lacked support from their social networks or who were not open about being in a queer relationship. The interviewees' accounts also contained strategies to resist and manage shame. Conclusions: The theoretical and empirical contributions of this paper sheds new light on how shame, victimization and queerness are entangled in the case of IPV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Surgical excision of the tumor remains the primary choice for the treatment of head and neck cancer patients, but it often leads to facial disfigurement, which further causes mutilation in the patients. Mutilation causes shame and stigma, which imparts significant psychological strain on patients, and tends to impair their quality of life. Objective: The present study aimed to assess the shame and stigma over long-term postoperative survival duration in head and neck cancer patients. Methodology: Total 100 postoperative patients of head and neck cancer were recruited from the outpatient department of the host institute, and shame and stigma was assessed using the Hindi version of the shame and stigma scale. Results: The global shame and stigma score was 22.67 ± 16.22, with the highest perceived stigma due to changes in appearance (11.94 ± 8.805), followed by impaired speech (4.490 ± 3.243), feeling of regret (3.950 ± 3.313), and feeling of stigma (4.490 ± 3.243). The shame and stigma was found to be significantly higher in maxillary cancer patients (33.22 ± 16.60), followed by larynx cancer patients (22.06 ± 13.41) and oral cancer patients (21.53 ± 16.49). Patients with stage III and stage IV of cancer were found to perceive higher shame and stigma (35.91 ± 22.23 and 27.36 ± 14.71, respectively) compared to the patients having stage I and stage II cancer (9.583 ± 9.709 and 16.44 ± 11.82, respectively). A significantly declining linear trend was found between shame and stigma and postoperative survival duration. Conclusion: We concluded that shame and stigma act as important determinants of quality of life over long-term survival in head and neck cancer patients, and should be considered while designing psychological interventions and surgical reconstruction protocols. The present study will help clinicians to assess the mutilation among head and neck cancer patients in a better way and will help in devising new psychological strategies to manage psychological aspects associated with mutilation, which will ultimately enhance the quality of life of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fear of failure undermines students' learning and well-being. However, despite the prevalence of fear of failure, there is a lack of a measurement tool explicitly designed to assess the fear of failure in learning among Chinese students. This study aimed to adapt and validate the Chinese version of the Fear of Failure in Learning Scale (C-FOFLS). Exploratory factor analyses were conducted for the adaptation group (N = 353) and a four-factor solution was found. The construct validity of the four-factor structure was subsequently confirmed by item-level analysis and confirmatory factor analysis for the validation group (N = 366). The final scale was comprised of 22 items and had four underlying dimensions: shame, performance avoidance, learned helplessness, and self-handicapping. Pearson correlation analyses demonstrated satisfactory convergent validity and concurrent validity of the C-FOFLS. C-FOFLS could be a valuable tool for conducting research on the fear of failure in learning of Chinese students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Body-related shame – operationalised as feeling inadequate about one's appearance, fitness, function, and bodily behaviours – is an emotional experience with particular relevance to athletes given the evaluative, social, and achievement-oriented nature of sport. To date, in-depth explorations of athletes' body-related shame have been scarce and have had a restricted focus on the domain of bodily appearance. Exploring body-related shame is particularly important for women, given consistent evidence for the gendered experience of shame contextualised to the body. As such, the present study explored the phenomenological experiences of body-related shame in women athletes. Sixteen purposefully sampled women athletes aged 18–26 with a history of body preoccupation were recruited to participate in two semi-structured interviews separated by a week-long reflective journaling exercise. Participants shared experiences of body-related shame related to appearance, health behaviours, training, and performance in the sport context. Using reflexive thematic analysis, researchers identified five themes that highlighted women athletes' experiences of body-related shame. Themes included (a) striving to be a worthy athlete; (b) conflicting body ideals and changing roles in sport; (c) the objectified sport body; (d) anti-fatness as the bedrock of sport; (e) shame resistance and athletic invincibility. Results from this study highlight the unique factors that contribute to body-related shame among women athletes from a variety of sport backgrounds and provide preliminary insight to inform the measurement of body-related shame and potential individual and systems-level interventions to improve the emotional well-being of women athletes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interplay between obesity and mental health in old age is complex and widely impacted by different biological, psychological, and social factors. The primary objectives of this qualitative research study are: a) To explore the influence of obesity on older adults’ well-being; b) to understand emotional experiences related to obesity in old age and; c) to explore how obesity influences the mental health of older adults. This study included 692 participants aged 65 to 84 years (M = 73.9; SD = 5.61) from three different nationalities (English, Spanish, and Portuguese). The study involved in-depth interviews conducted via telephone or online, with questions designed to elicit detailed narratives about participants’ experiences, and the data were analyzed using content analysis to identify key themes and patterns. This study identified four main themes regarding the influence of obesity on older adults’ well-being: (1) Body image dissatisfaction (66%); (2) Fat shaming (65%); (3) Increased isolation (57%); and (4) Loss of opportunities (46%). Three main themes for emotional experiences were frequently verbalized by the participants: (1) Shame (81%); (2) Guilt (78%); and (2) Worthlessness (76%). Finally, three main influences in mental health due to obesity were reported: (1) Self-esteem (88%); (2) Distress (78%); and (3) Depression (63%). These results highlighted that obesity negatively influences older adults’ well-being and emotional experiences and has serious mental health-related negative outcomes for older adults. Interventions like community-based weight loss programs can be effective in controlling weight and improving the social interaction of obese older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the relationship between perceived parental conflict, self‐compassion, shame, and social anxiety and its internal mechanisms through two studies. Study 1 took 612 middle school students (285 women, 327 men, M = 14.18 years, SD = 1.72) as participants, and the Children's Perception of Interparental Conflict Scale, Self‐compassion scale (SCS), shame scale (SS), and Social Anxiety Scale were used for testing. The results showed that perceived parental conflict was significantly correlated with self‐compassion, shame, and social anxiety. Perceived parental conflict affects middle school students' social anxiety through feelings of self‐compassion and shame. In study 2, 106 middle school students (76 women, 30 men, M = 15.47 years, SD = 0.62) were randomly assigned to the self‐compassion group and control group, and students were asked to complete different literacy tasks, and then fill out the SCS, SS and adolescent social anxiety scale in turn. The results found that in the context of parental conflict, inducing the self‐compassion of middle school students can reduce the level of shame and social anxiety. The introduction of the concept of self‐compassion into the field of middle school students' mental health reveals the function of self‐compassion. It expands the relevant research on the intermediary role of self‐compassion, and also provides innovative ideas for the future research of mental health education in primary and secondary schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Pregnant and parenting people (PPP) experience complex challenges when seeking recovery from substance use disorders (SUD). Using a community‐based participatory research approach, researchers partnered with PPP seeking recovery from SUD to explore supports needed in their communities. Findings are reported in adherence with the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research. Thirty PPP were recruited from a residential drug recovery facility in the Southeastern United States. Participant interviews were conducted in‐person or virtually. PPP were asked to identify existing and needed parenting and recovery supports in their communities. Interviews were transcribed, verified for accuracy and coded using NVIVO software. Thematic analysis was framed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) eight dimensions of wellness, which reflect wellness standards across life domains. Participants identified internal and external challenges including feelings of guilt and shame, treatment access issues, lack of recovery support, grief and loss and inadequate instrumental support. Needed supports were broadly categorised as parenting resources, childcare resources, housing supports, recovery supports, occupational training and assistance and spirituality resources, and then evaluated and sorted based on appropriate fit within the SAMHSA's eight dimensions of wellness. Highest perceived needs fit within Intellectual, Emotional, Spiritual and Environmental wellness dimensions, respectively. Healthcare providers promoting recovery for PPP should focus on support needs within SAMHSA's dimensions of wellness and develop strategies that address the full range of these critical wellness dimensions. Intellectual, emotional and tangible environmental supports including parenting and recovery skills training, accessible mental health care and residential housing with childcare availability are essential for long‐term recovery and positive parenting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explored the potential benefits and costs of believing one can change their weight (i.e. growth mindset) in the context of a digital weight management program. We investigated mechanisms by which growth mindsets relate to weight loss achievement and body shame. Among participants seeking to lose weight (N = 1626; 74.7% female; 77.9% White; M age = 45.7), stronger growth mindsets indirectly predicted greater weight loss achievement through positive offset expectations and subsequent increased program engagement. Additionally, stronger growth mindsets predicted less body shame through positive offset expectations but predicted more body shame through increased onset responsibility, replicating the double-edged sword model of growth mindsets. We conclude with applications that leverage growth mindsets for optimal behavior change while mitigating costs such as body shame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sex guilt refers to a feeling of shame or anxiety induced by sexual behavior due to the inconsistency between a person's value and their sexuality. Sex guilt often stems from traditional, gender stereotypical sexual views and attitudes. In this study, we inquired what factors could be predicting sex guilt. Negative sexual messaging (NSM) refers to the promotion of abstinence and the glorification of virginity, representing a set of sex‐negatives views. We evaluated the relationships between NSM in childhood and sex guilt in adulthood. We include childhood sexual abuse as an alternative predictor of sex guilt to anchor our results with NSM. Participants were recruited through undergraduate groups and online platforms (total N = 1322) and completed an online survey regarding about their sexual experience. We found that NSM was a strong, persistent predictor of sex guilt. Those who experienced more NSM reported higher sex guilt. Our findings could be particularly informative for educators and policy maker who creates sex education curricula. Further study is needed to clarify the mechanisms through which NSM are associated with sex guilt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transactional sexual relationships (TSRs) take varied forms, with research emphasizing TSRs' inherent risks, primarily to women. In South Africa, Blessed relationships have emerged as a prominent type of TSR. Blessers have become coveted male partners due to their relative wealth and willingness to 'bless' female partners with financial and material gifts, as well as the improved social status that accompanies such partnerships. Given the limited literature on Blesser partnerships, we investigated women's implicit and explicit negotiated rewards and their perceived risk and ability to employ risk mitigation strategies, utilizing risk as a sociological concept to enhance understanding of risks women assume, and subsequent gendered implications. This qualitative study was conducted in 2017-2018 in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, South Africa, a high HIV prevalence setting, with 22 women, using purposive and snowball sampling methods. We found that women in relationships with a Blesser recognize and navigate a number of risks, including: the threat of HIV acquisition, falling pregnant, experiencing an emotional void following a TSR, and expressed feelings of guilt and shame, as segments of South African society remain judgmental of TSRs. These risks are then weighed against the pursuit of sustained financial and social rewards achieved through such relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Stigma is a complex construct and its association with help-seeking among those experiencing eating disorders is not well understood. Rates of help-seeking are low for those with eating disorder symptoms and, therefore, determining the role of stigma and shame in this relationship is needed to help inform effective awareness campaigns aimed at improving prognostic outcomes. The current study examined the associations between perceived stigma, self-stigma, shame, and help-seeking behaviour in a community sample of individuals with elevated eating disorder symptoms. Methods: Participants completed an online survey that included measures of stigma and shame as perceived barriers to help-seeking for individuals with eating disorders. Those with elevated eating disorder symptoms and high clinical impairment were included in the study (N = 333). Results: Using binary logistic regression models controlling for age and gender, results showed that perceived stigma, self-stigma, and shame predicted 64% of help-seeking behaviour (p =.005). The only significant unique predictor of formal help-seeking was "Being concerned that other people believe eating disorders are not real illnesses". No other stigma or shame items were found to significantly predict help-seeking. Conclusions: The present findings suggest that while stigma plays an important role in help-seeking, it might not be the primary reason preventing individuals with eating disorders from accessing care. The field is encouraged to investigate these factors to promote help-seeking effectively. Plain english summary: Eating disorders are highly prevalent worldwide and have severe mental health and medical consequences. While effective treatments for eating disorders exist, many of those who experience eating disorder symptoms do not reach out for help. Delays in help-seeking are associated with negative outcomes for affected individuals but also their families, caregivers, and the broader healthcare system. To better understand the factors preventing individuals with eating disorders from seeking help, we investigated the role of stigma and shame in this relationship. Participants completed a survey assessing their eating disorder symptoms, help-seeking behaviour, and barriers to seeking help. Those with elevated eating disorder symptoms (e.g., disordered eating and/or high weight and shape concerns negatively affecting their life) were included in the study. Participants reported that stigma and shame, specifically, "Being concerned that other people believe eating disorders are not real illnesses", prevented them from seeking help. Our results help to clarify the types of stigma most relevant to help-seeking, which may be targeted in awareness campaigns to improve access to care for people with eating disorders. It would be beneficial for future studies to explore other prominent help-seeking barriers to improve clinical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maladaptive eating attitudes that are common among nonclinical emerging adults may constitute an intense vulnerability for various eating disorders. Although the association between childhood trauma and adulthood eating problems has been widely established, the need for further knowledge of the explanatory role of emotional mechanisms in the relationship remains. Therefore, the study aimed to examine the mediator roles of self-disgust and body shame in the association between childhood trauma and maladaptive eating attitudes. The study sample comprised 397 volunteered women aged between 18 and 25 (M = 21.89, SD = 2.11). The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Self-Disgust Scale - Revised Form, Objectified Body Consciousness Scale, and Eating Attitudes Test were administered online for data collection. The results of the correlation analysis revealed a positive relationship among childhood trauma, self-directed disgust, body shame, and disordered eating attitudes. The serial model was also significant, indicating that both self-disgust and body shame independently and together fully mediated the association between childhood trauma and maladaptive eating attitudes. These findings point to the importance of assessing early life traumas and emotional maintaining factors for comprehensive case conceptualizations and preventive and therapeutic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis summarize current knowledge on emotional change processes and mechanisms and their relationship with outcomes in psychotherapy. Method: We reviewed the main change processes and mechanisms in the literature and conducted meta-analyses of process/mechanism–outcome associations whenever methodologically feasible. Results: A total of 121 studies, based on 92 unique samples, met criteria for inclusion. Of these, 85 studies could be subjected to meta-analysis. The emotional change processes and mechanisms most robustly related to improvement were fear habituation across sessions in exposure-based treatment of anxiety disorders (r =.38), experiencing in psychotherapy for depression (r =.44), and emotion regulation in psychotherapies for patients with various anxiety disorders (r =.37). Common methodological problems were that studies often did not ascertain representative estimates of the processes under investigation, determine if changes in processes and mechanisms temporally preceded outcomes, disentangle effects at the within- and between-client levels, or assess contributions of therapists and clients to a given process. Conclusions: The present study has identified a number of emotional processes and mechanisms associated with outcome in psychotherapy, most notably fear habituation, emotion regulation, and experiencing. A common denominator between these appears to be the habitual reorganization of maladaptive emotional perception. We view this as a central pan-theoretical change mechanism, the essence of which appears to be increased differentiation between external triggers and one's own affective responses, which facilitates tolerance for affective arousals and leads to improved capacity for adaptive meaning-making in emotion-eliciting situations. What is the public health significance of this article?: This review demonstrates that helping clients differentiate between emotion-eliciting stimuli and their associated affective responses is essential across theoretical approaches. Increased affective differentiation presumably leads to reorganization of perceptual processes, improves tolerance of emotional activation, and fosters openness to the informational value of emotions, thus leading to therapeutic improvement. Findings also indicate that psychotherapy models focusing on emotional processes would profit from more systematically differentiating between different emotions (e.g., anxiety, sadness, anger, contempt, disgust, shame, guilt, interest, joy, and tenderness) and more explicitly focusing on helping clients adaptively express such emotions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Shame is a powerful self‐conscious emotion that is often experienced by individuals with eating disorders (EDs). While the association between EDs and shame is well‐established, there is limited research investigating the contribution of pre‐treatment shame to clinical outcomes. Method: Participants (N = 273) received outpatient cognitive‐behavioral therapy for eating disorders (CBT‐ED). We investigated pre‐treatment shame as a predictor of dropout and as a moderator of change in ED psychopathology and clinical impairment from pre‐treatment to post‐treatment. We also explored the potentially moderating roles of body mass index, ED diagnostic category, and co‐occurring anxiety and depression diagnoses. Results: Shame improved substantially (d = 1.28) despite not being explicitly targeted in treatment. Pre‐treatment shame did not predict treatment dropout. Individuals high in shame started and ended treatment with higher ED symptoms and impairment than those with low shame. The contribution of pre‐treatment shame on the degree of change in symptoms/impairment depended critically on whether analyses controlled for pre‐treatment symptoms/impairment. When those were controlled, high pre‐treatment shame was associated with substantially less improvement in ED symptoms and impairment. There was some evidence that ED diagnosis and co‐occurring depressive diagnoses may moderate the relationship between shame and treatment outcome. Changes in shame were positively associated with changes in ED symptoms and clinical impairment. Discussion: A high level of shame at pre‐treatment is not a contraindication for CBT‐ED as good therapeutic outcomes can be achieved. However, outcomes may be enhanced among individuals high in shame by offering adjunctive interventions that explicitly target shame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient health literacy, including basic anatomy knowledge, leads to improved communication and better health outcomes. Limited empirical data suggests that external genital anatomy may represent a particular knowledge gap. To inform future health literacy improvement efforts, we explored patient perspectives about how gynecologic anatomical literacy is generated and applied. Twenty semi-structured interviews with obstetrics and gynecology patients at a tertiary care centre were conducted to explore their knowledge of female genital anatomy and the origins of that knowledge. Thematic analysis was performed comparatively and iteratively, informed by principles of constructivist grounded theory. Participants highlighted an overwhelming lack of health education and high levels of internalized shame, leaving them ill-equipped to engage in conversations about their genitalia with healthcare providers. To combat this, participants attempted to construct knowledge for themselves; however, many grappled to identify reliable sources of information and felt uncertainty when communicating about their bodies. These findings contribute to an ongoing conversation about how an avoidance of naming may perpetuate the passivity and embarrassment that women experience regarding their reproductive health. Healthcare providers are well-situated to improve patient self-perception by using purposeful language and working to address both patient knowledge and activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study examined how men respond to #MeToo scenarios alongside perceptions of rape myths and gender equity. It examined social media post reactions of stigma, shame, fear repercussions, victim blaming, truth telling, and real assault belief. Methods: The sample of 407 male survey participants responded to closed‐ and open‐ended questions in MTurk. Men responded to three #MeToo posts copied from Twitter, which included statements of sexual harassment and assault, to measure perceptions of stigmatization, shame, and victim blame. Variables also measured rape myth acceptance, gender equity ideals, and demographic variables such as race, ethnicity, employment, and relationship status. Results: The study demonstrated most men ascribed to rape myths and rape culture in their beliefs, but these beliefs usually did not lead directly to their written responses. The quantitative data showed men who accept rape myths also perceive victims as earning outcomes of shame, stigma, and blame. The qualitative data demonstrated most men supported victims' posts sharing their #MeToo stories with few harmful, stigmatizing responses. Conclusion: Men hold beliefs that might not lead to direct behaviors in responding to #MeToo posts. Additional research must be completed using other survey platforms to gain the male response to victim story sharing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay offers an example of Pacific Island biblical contextual reading. My approach draws on 'Western' methods (specifically sociorhetorical interpretation) but adapts and locates them for a Samoan cultural context. In this context, humour and derision can help save face in situations where violence and disorder may occur. The phrase mata o masiasi (face of shame) is utilized in Samoan society for such a purpose. This is an essential aspect of Samoan rhetoric, especially in a community where nurturing and sustaining the va (space-in-between, betweenness) is the sine qua non. The va is the relational space that is foundational to all relationships in society. Resituating the fool's speech of 2 Corinthians 11.1–12.10 within an indigenous Samoan-inspired framework leads to new questions regarding the biblical text with the goal of resituating the biblical text to make sense in my Samoan context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to a dominant view of stigma, a person is stigmatized within a community if sufficiently many people within that community hold a bad view of her. I call this the 'Bad View Model'. In this paper, I argue against the Bad View Model on the grounds that such beliefs are neither necessary nor sufficient for stigma, and that the account cannot explain the distinctive phenomenology of stigma, including certain vulnerabilities to shame. I then develop an alternative that explains these features of stigma, which I call the 'Shaming Model'. On this view, a person is stigmatized within a community if she is shamed by members of that community, and this is explained by their belief that she has deviated from some social norm and/or standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Compassion-informed talking therapies have gained increased attention with people who hear voices and practitioners alike. Developing inner kindness can reduce powerful critical voices and self-stigma, thus increasing people's ability to cope with challenging voice hearing experiences, and potentially increase overall wellbeing. Methods: The current review aimed to explore how compassion-informed approaches to coping with voice hearing are understood and reported across the existent voice-hearing literature. Academic Search Ultimate, MedLine and PsychINFO databases were searched for suitable papers, using the terms: ["hear* voice*" OR "voice hear*" OR "auditory hallucinat*"] AND compassion*. Results: Fourteen papers were identified for inclusion: six quantitative studies, six qualitative reports, and two theoretical reviews. Included studies host a total sample size of 855 people, representative of clinical and community populations, across adolescence and adulthood. The reviewed research originated from the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, and the United States of America. Discussion: Self-compassion and building a compassionate alliance with one's voices can be challenging for many voice hearers to initially embrace. Over time, building a mutually compassionate relationship with one's voices can help empower the voice hearer by resolving, rather than increasing, inner conflicts, and may increase opportunities to experience the presence of agreeable voices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mencius' concept of shame has emerged as a space of comparison between shame cultures in the East and West in cross-cultural research. However, comparative research on shame in Buddhist and Confucian cultures is scarce. Hence, this study examines the Buddhist psychological Shame concepts of "hrī" (Can 慚, shame) and "apatrāpya" (Kui 愧, abashment) and the Confucian "xiuwuzhixin" (羞惡之心, the mind of shame) as representative examples that reveal a subject boundary that restricts shame to human beings and explores the similar subject-subordinate structures of these concepts. The study then analyzes the internal and external forces that induce shame. Finally, it discusses the goodness ascribed to shame and how deviation from shame leads to evil. Results reveal fundamental differences in the understanding of shame between the two cultures. In particular, "hrī" and "apatrāpya" in Buddhism are rooted in the psychological consciousness function, whereas "xiuwuzhixin" in Confucian culture is rooted in the ethics function. This cross-cultural comparison of shame highlights the tension and complexity inherent in this concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]