In its study titled “Cross-Cultural evidence that shame is a defense against reputational damage”, an international research team led by the University of Greifswald investigated the specific conditions under which humans experienced a particularly strong feeling of shame. Up until now, shame has often been regarded as a burdening and harmful emotion that is associated with feelings of inferiority and can lead to evasion and hostility.
No coincidence: shame is a reaction to specific risks
The results of the study that were recently published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) now provide a new perspective: shame acts as a delicate social compass that informs us when humans risk being devalued by others as a result of their actions. As a psychological mechanism, shame should help us avoid damage to our reputation and is therefore not just unpleasant, but also fulfils a function. Similar to physical pain that protects us from physical injuries, such as accidentally touching a hot hob, shame helps us to be more careful in the future.
Coordinated by lead author Dr. Yiftach Argaman from the University of Greifswald’s Institute of Psychology, the team investigated the feelings of test subjects from six countries: the USA, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Japan, and China, as well as from two culturally distinct regions in the USA. In the study, the participants read short scenarios about personal failures, e.g. bad test results or the lack of competence in specific skills. They then rated how intensely they would feel shame in each of the situations. The results showed a clear pattern across all of the geographical locations: the shame felt by humans is more intense if a mistake is serious, i.e. in particular, abilities that are highly regarded by society, e.g. intelligence or communication skills. Furthermore, shame is perceived more intensely if a mistake that an individual has made is visible to the public and seen by others. “Our results suggest that shame reacts very precisely to situations in which one’s own social reputation is at risk,” explains Argaman. “It seems to help us assess the potential social costs of a mistake - almost like a psychological warning system.”
Shame as an invisible shield against exclusion
The researchers consider shame to be part of a psychological system that helps humans deal with a central challenge in social communities: the risk of being devalued by others. “If other humans perceive someone to be less competent, less trustworthy, or less cooperative, this can mean that they will provide less support or are more likely to harm that person. In such situations, shame can help to avoid potentially harmful behaviour, to hide or limit information about one’s own mistakes, but also to restore one’s own social status,” says Argaman.
Although there are major differences between the cultures of the countries involved in the study – in particular between China, the Netherlands, and the USA – a similar pattern was found in all of them: regardless of their origin or values, humans from across the world reacted similarly to the two key factors: the severity of the mistake and its public visibility to others. “The results suggest that fundamental mechanisms of shame are largely universal,” stresses Argaman. “Cultural norms might influence how intensely shame is felt or how it is dealt with, but the trigger remains the same. Even if shame is painful, it can still be useful in regulating social behaviour.”
Further information
Link to the Professorship for Emotion & Motivation
Some of the research was supported by grants from the Israel Science Foundation (ISF) and the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).
Publication:
Y. Argaman, D. Sznycer, J. Crusius, F. van Leeuwen, Y. Ohtsubo, H. Ishihara, J. Zhuang, Q. Zhou, T. Castelain, F. Neto, J. Neto, & A. Kron, Cross-cultural evidence that shame is a defense against reputational damage, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 123 (13) e2526787123, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2526787123 (2026).
Contact at the University of Greifswald
Dr. Yiftach Argaman
Institute of Psychology
Franz-Mehring-Straße 47, 17489 Greifswald
Tel.: +49 3834 420 3782
iftach.argamanuni-greifswaldde
https://www.linkedin.com/in/yiftach-argaman-12988461/