The DOI matches its Crossref record; 2 of the 2 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Are shame, guilt, and embarrassment distinct emotions?
Abstract
182 undergraduates described personal embarrassment, shame, and guilt experiences and rated these experiences on structural and phenomenological dimensions. Contrary to popular belief, shame was no more likely than guilt to be experienced in "public" situations; all 3 emotions typically occurred in social contexts, but a significant proportion of shame and guilt events occurred when respondents were alone. Analyses of participants' phenomenological ratings clearly demonstrated that shame, guilt, and embarrassment are not merely different terms for the same affective experience. In particular, embarrassment was a relatively distant neighbor of shame and guilt, and the differences among the 3 could not be explained simply by intensity of affect or by degree of moral transgression. Finally, participants generally were their own harshest critics in each type of event, evaluating themselves more negatively than they believed others did.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Shame is closely related to guilt, but can be differentiated from it. In guilt, focus is typically on the person who was transgressed or the relationship that was affected, rather than the self (Tangney et al., 1996). Guilt pushes us out into the world, in an attempt to activate efforts to repair the damage by either reparative action or punishment (Tangney et al., 1996). In contrast, shame”
From Is Shame Hallucinogenic? (2017) · cites this paper as Tangney et al., 1996
In the citing paper
“It is therefore unsurprising that shame is associated with a desire to hide (Tangney et al., 1996).”
From Is Shame Hallucinogenic? (2017) · cites this paper as Tangney et al., 1996
Citations
Cites
The publisher hasn’t deposited this paper’s reference list.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 601–700 of 1,002
Inducing Guilt: A Literature Review
Rebega, O. L., Apostol, L., Bengà, O., & Miclea, M. (2013) · Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.04.346 · Cited by 20
Horan, S. M., & Dillow, M. R. (2009) · Atlantic Journal of Communication · doi:10.1080/15456870903156126 · Cited by 20
Klinger, R. S., Ladany, N., & Kulp, L. E. (2011) · The Counseling Psychologist · doi:10.1177/0011000011416372 · Cited by 20
Davis, S. N. P., Ferrar, S. J., Sadikaj, G., Binik, Y. M., & A., C. S. (2016) · Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy · doi:10.1080/0092623x.2016.1147511 · Cited by 20
Sustainable Luxury Fashion Consumption and the Moderating Role of Guilt
Ki, C.-W. C., & Kim, Y. (2016) · Fashion, Industry and Education/International journal of costume culture · doi:10.7741/fie.2016.14.1.018 · Cited by 20
Heerde, J. A., & Pallotta‐Chiarolli, M. (2019) · Journal of Youth Studies · doi:10.1080/13676261.2019.1610558 · Cited by 20
Ryall, E. S. T. (2019) · Journal of the Philosophy of Sport · doi:10.1080/00948705.2019.1609359 · Cited by 20
Wallace, P. S., & Taylor, S. P. (2008) · Aggressive Behavior · doi:10.1002/ab.20294 · Cited by 20
Grey, I. M., Daly, R., Thomas, J., & Marassas, W. (2018) · Mental Health Religion & Culture · doi:10.1080/13674676.2018.1455651 · Cited by 20
Preliminary Analyses of Three Measures of Grace: Can They be Unified?
Bufford, R. K., Blackburn, A. M., Sisemore, T. A., & Bassett, R. L. (2015) · Journal of Psychology and Theology · doi:10.1177/009164711504300202 · Cited by 20
Guilty displeasures: How imagined guilt dampens consumer enjoyment
Elder, R., & Mohr, G. S. (2020) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2020.104641 · Cited by 19
Ndone, J., Warner, B. R., & Duffy, M. E. (2022) · International Journal of Strategic Communication · doi:10.1080/1553118x.2022.2085574 · Cited by 19
COPING STYLES FOR TRAIT SHAME AND ANXIETY INTENSITY AND DIRECTION IN COMPETITIVE ATHLETES
Partridge, J. A., & Wiggins, M. S. (2008) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/pr0.103.3.703-712 · Cited by 19
Treating Depression in Men: The Role of Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy
Wittenborn, A. K., Culpepper, B., & Liu, T. (2012) · Contemporary Family Therapy · doi:10.1007/s10591-012-9176-8 · Cited by 19
Interpersonal Esteem Enhancement
Holmstrom, A. J. (2012) · Communication Research · doi:10.1177/0093650212463730 · Cited by 19
The Evolution of Guilt: A Model-Based Approach
O’Connor, C. (2016) · Philosophy of Science · doi:10.1086/687873 · Cited by 21
Differences and Similarities in Forgiveness Seeking Across Childhood and Adolescence
Riek, B. M., & DeWit, C. (2018) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167218760797 · Cited by 19
Exploring conspicuous compassion as a brand management strategy
Childs, M. L., & Kim, S. (2019) · Journal of Product & Brand Management · doi:10.1108/jpbm-05-2018-1882 · Cited by 19
Keeping the self in self-conscious emotions: Further arguments for a theoretical model
Tracy, J. L., & Robins, R. W. (2004) · Psychological Inquiry · Cited by 19
Uhrig, S. C. N. (2012) · Longitudinal and Life Course Studies · doi:10.14301/llcs.v3i1.164 · Cited by 19
A psychometric evaluation of the Loss of Face Scale.
Leong, F. T. L., Byrne, B. M., Hardin, E. E., Zhang, H., & Chong, S. (2017) · Psychological Assessment · doi:10.1037/pas0000492 · Cited by 22
Keng, S., & Tan, J. X. (2017) · Behaviour Research and Therapy · doi:10.1016/j.brat.2017.07.004 · Cited by 21
Self‐Conscious Emotions in Sport and Exercise
Sabiston, C. M., Pila, E., & Gilchrist, J. D. (2020) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119568124.ch14 · Cited by 20
Embarrassment and Social Anxiety Disorder: Fraternal Twins or Distant Cousins?
Miller, R. S. (2014) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-394427-6.00005-4 · Cited by 18
Self-citationFacial Emotional Expressions of Li fe-like Character Based on Text Classifier and Fuzzy Logic
Sumpeno, S., Hariadi, M., & Purnomo, M. H. (2011) · Cited by 18
Pontes, V., Pontes, N., Greer, D. A., & Beatson, A. (2021) · European Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1108/ejm-06-2019-0448 · Cited by 20
Guilt, shame and their associations with chronic diseases in Czech adults
Černá, A., Maliňáková, K., van Dijk, J. P., Žídková, R., & Tavel, P. (2021) · Psychology Health & Medicine · doi:10.1080/13548506.2021.1903058 · Cited by 18
Being there without being there: Gifts compensate for lack of in‐person support
Wiener, H. J. D., Howe, H. S., & Chartrand, T. L. (2022) · Psychology and Marketing · doi:10.1002/mar.21645 · Cited by 18
Lange, J., & Zickfeld, J. (2023) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/emo0001214 · Cited by 17
Self‐concealment, secrecy, and guilt
Davis, C. G. (2023) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/jopy.12832 · Cited by 18
Jackson, L., Fallon, V., Harrold, J. A., & Pascalis, L. D. (2023) · Maternal and Child Nutrition · doi:10.1111/mcn.13558 · Cited by 20
Plakias, A. (2024) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197683606.001.0001 · Cited by 19
Blushing and Social Anxiety: A Meta-Analysis
Nikolić, M., Colonnesi, C., de Vente, W., Drummond, P. D., & Bögels, S. M. (2015) · Clinical Psychology Science and Practice · doi:10.1111/cpsp.12102 · Cited by 19
Piquero, A. R. (2016) · Justice Quarterly · doi:10.1080/07418825.2016.1185530 · Cited by 22
Guilt as a Motivator for Moral Judgment: An Autobiographical Memory Study
Knez, I., & Nordhall, O. (2017) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00750 · Cited by 18
Rice, S., Treeby, M. S., OLIVE, L. S., Saw, A. E., Kountouris, A., Lloyd, M., Macleod, G., Orchard, J. W., Clarke, P., Gwyther, K., et al. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.581914 · Cited by 19
Social Effects of Facial Blushing: Influence of Context and Actor Versus Observer Perspective
de Jong, P. J., & Dijk, C. (2013) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/spc3.12009 · Cited by 18
Do not play God: contrasting effects of deontological guilt and pride on decision-making
Mancini, A., & Mancini, F. (2015) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01251 · Cited by 18
Bolkan, S., & Rains, S. A. (2015) · Communication Research · doi:10.1177/0093650215602308 · Cited by 18
Guilt, shame, and apologizing behavior: A laboratory study
Chrdileli, M., & Kasser, T. (2018) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2018.07.035 · Cited by 18
Neural basis of shame and guilt experience in women with borderline personality disorder
Göttlich, M., Westermair, A. L., Beyer, F., Bussmann, M.-L., Schweiger, U., & Krämer, U. M. (2020) · European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience · doi:10.1007/s00406-020-01132-z · Cited by 17
The interactive origins and outcomes of embarrassment
Miller, R. S. (2012) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9781139012850.013 · Cited by 17
Self-citationInvestigating gender differences in consumers’ experience of guilt: A comparative study
Kayal, G. G., Simintiras, A., & Rana, N. P. (2017) · Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services · doi:10.1016/j.jretconser.2017.07.006 · Cited by 15
Holmstrom, A. J., Shebib, S. J., Mazur, A. P., Mason, A. J., Zhang, L., Allard, A., & Boumis, J. K. (2020) · Human Communication Research · doi:10.1093/hcr/hqaa015 · Cited by 16
From implicit to explicit body awareness in the first two years of life
Rochat, P., & Botto, S. V. (2021) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780198851721.003.0011 · Cited by 17
A bibliometric analysis of scientific literature on guilt in marketing
Patil, T., & Rahman, Z. (2022) · Management Review Quarterly · doi:10.1007/s11301-022-00277-6 · Cited by 17
Chan, E. K., Wan, L. C., & Yi, X. (2022) · Annals of Tourism Research · doi:10.1016/j.annals.2022.103494 · Cited by 17
Mazzuca, S., Moscatelli, S., Menegatti, M., & Rubini, M. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.999750 · Cited by 25
Graham, A. J., McCormack, T., Lorimer, S., Hoerl, C., Beck, S. R., Johnston, M., & Feeney, A. (2022) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/emo0001191 · Cited by 18
Kang, E. Y., Atkinson, L., & Sung, Y. H. (2023) · Journal of Consumer Behaviour · doi:10.1002/cb.2209 · Cited by 17
Park, E. G. (2025) · International Journal of Strategic Communication · doi:10.1080/1553118x.2025.2462087 · Cited by 18
Duarte, C., & Pinto-gouveia, J. (2016) · Sex Roles · doi:10.1007/s11199-016-0728-5
Shame and Psychotherapy: Theory, Method and Practice
Sinha, M. (2017) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-53100-7_11 · Cited by 17
Deonna, J. A., & Teroni, F. (2011) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-94-007-1266-9_11 · Cited by 17
Moral Psychology as Accountability
Dill, B., & Darwall, S. (2014) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198717812.003.0003 · Cited by 17
Wakimoto, R. (2011) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167211400422 · Cited by 17
Træen, B., & S⊘rensen, D. (2008) · Sexual & Relationship Therapy · doi:10.1080/14681990802385699 · Cited by 19
Pila, E., Solomon‐Krakus, S., Egelton, K., & Sabiston, C. M. (2017) · Journal of Women & Aging · doi:10.1080/08952841.2017.1295669 · Cited by 17
Between the eye and the gaze: Maternal shame in the novel We Need to Talk about Kevin
Slobodin, O. (2018) · Feminism & Psychology · doi:10.1177/0959353518783785 · Cited by 17
López, M. C., Murphy, J. J., Spraggon, J. M., & Stranlund, J. K. (2009) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.1476848 · Cited by 17
Wei, X., Su, L., & Du, J. (2024) · Tourism Management · doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2024.104993 · Cited by 16
Heng, Y. T., & Fehr, R. (2022) · Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes · doi:10.1016/j.obhdp.2022.104151 · Cited by 17
The psychophysiology of guilt in healthy adults
Stewart, C. A., Mitchell, D. G. V., MacDonald, P. A., Pasternak, S., Tremblay, P. F., & Finger, E. C. (2023) · Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3758/s13415-023-01079-3 · Cited by 24
Qiu, W., Clegg, J. L., Mattos, H. G.-D., & Buckley, P. J. (2023) · International Business Review · doi:10.1016/j.ibusrev.2023.102167 · Cited by 18
Facing contradictory emotions in event marketing: leveraging on surprise
Addis, M., Miniero, G., & Soscia, I. (2018) · Journal of Consumer Marketing · doi:10.1108/jcm-06-2016-1862 · Cited by 16
Kardoš, P., Leidner, B., Castano, E., & Lickel, B. A. (2018) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2506 · Cited by 16
Witnessing verbal aggression: role of customers’ self-conscious emotions
Okan, M., & Elmadağ, A. B. (2020) · Journal of Services Marketing · doi:10.1108/jsm-01-2019-0037 · Cited by 15
Shame-prone gamblers and their coping with gambling loss
Yi, S. (2012) · Journal of Gambling Issues · doi:10.4309/jgi.2012.27.7 · Cited by 16
The role of group size in reactions to ostracism and inclusion
Tobin, S. J., McDermott, S., & French, L. A. (2017) · Group Processes & Intergroup Relations · doi:10.1177/1368430217702723 · Cited by 16
When It’s Good to Feel Bad: An Evolutionary Model of Guilt and Apology
Rosenstock, S., & O’Connor, C. (2018) · Frontiers in Robotics and AI · doi:10.3389/frobt.2018.00009 · Cited by 20
Rowe, Z. O., Wilson, H., Dimitriu, R., Breiter, K., & Charnley, F. (2017) · Psychology and Marketing · doi:10.1002/mar.21003 · Cited by 15
Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to Assess Brain Activation Evoked by Guilt and Shame
Duan, L. F., Feng, Q., & Xu, P. (2020) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2020.00197 · Cited by 15
Lloyd, C., Lanius, R. A., Brown, M. F. D., Neufeld, R. J., Frewen, P., & McKinnon, M. C. (2019) · Chronic Stress · doi:10.1177/2470547018822492 · Cited by 18
A bright side of sadness: The depolarizing role of sadness in intergroup conflicts
Gur, T., Ayal, S., & Halperin, E. (2020) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2715 · Cited by 17
A Structured Review of Emotional Barriers to WASH Provision for Schoolgirls Post-Disaster
Royo, M. G., Parrott, E., Pacheco, E.-M., Ahmed, I., Meilianda, E., Kumala, I. D., Oktari, R. S., Joffé, H., & Parikh, P. (2022) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su14042471 · Cited by 18
Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Concomitants of Facial Blushing during Everyday Social Encounters
Rot, M. A. H., Moskowitz, D. S., & de Jong, P. J. (2015) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0118243 · Cited by 17
Ross-Tremblay, P. (2020) · University of London Press eBooks · doi:10.14296/620.9781912250424 · Cited by 15
Shame, sensitivity to punishment and psychiatric disorders
Guimón, J., Hayas, C. L., Guillén, V., Boyra, A., & Arrillaga, A. G.-P. (2007) · The European Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.4321/s0213-61632007000200004 · Cited by 15
An alternative model of self-forgiveness
McConnell, J. R., Dixon, D. N., & Finch, W. H. (2012) · PsycEXTRA Dataset · doi:10.1037/e534932013-005 · Cited by 15
Raggiotto, F., Confente, I., Scarpi, D., & Russo, I. (2024) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.143937 · Cited by 15
Body surveillance predicts young Chinese women’s social anxiety: testing a mediation model
Teng, F., & Poon, K. (2020) · Journal of Gender Studies · doi:10.1080/09589236.2020.1728523 · Cited by 15
Korman, B. A., Tröster, C., & Giessner, S. R. (2021) · Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies · doi:10.1177/15480518211005463 · Cited by 15
Emotion Appraisals and Coping with Secrets
Liu, Z., Kalokerinos, E. K., & Slepian, M. L. (2022) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/01461672221085377 · Cited by 14
Khan, S., Fazili, A. I., & Bashir, I. (2022) · Journal of Consumer Marketing · doi:10.1108/jcm-11-2020-4236 · Cited by 14
Development and validation of the body-related embarrassment scale (BREM)
Vani, M. F., Lucibello, K. M., & Sabiston, C. M. (2023) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-023-05183-y · Cited by 18
A Functional Model of Social Loafing: When and How Does Social Loafing Enhance Job Performance?
Liu, X., Zheng, X., Yu, Y., Zhang, Y., & Schaubroeck, J. M. (2024) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-023-05599-3 · Cited by 16
On (Im)Patience: A New Approach to an Old Virtue
Sweeny, K. M. (2024) · Personality and Social Psychology Review · doi:10.1177/10888683241263874 · Cited by 14
Polyviou, M., Rungtusanatham, M. J., & Kull, T. J. (2021) · Decision Sciences · doi:10.1111/deci.12528 · Cited by 14
Moral emotions in early childhood: Validation of the Moral Emotions Questionnaire (MEQ)
da Silva, B. M. S., Ketelaar, L., Veiga, G., Tsou, Y.-T., & Rieffe, C. (2022) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1177/01650254221075031 · Cited by 12
Shen, W., Evans, R., Liang, L. H., & Brown, D. J. (2022) · Applied Psychology · doi:10.1111/apps.12394 · Cited by 16
Peña, J. F., Craig, M., & Baumhardt, H. (2022) · New Media & Society · doi:10.1177/14614448221127258 · Cited by 18
Feelings of guilt and shame in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
ten Klooster, P. M., Christenhusz, L. C. A., Taal, E., Eggelmeijer, F., van Woerkom, J. M., & Rasker, J. J. (2014) · Clinical Rheumatology · doi:10.1007/s10067-014-2516-3 · Cited by 14
Kelley, M. S., Fukushima, M., Spivak, A. L., & Payne, D. (2009) · Journal of Drug Education · doi:10.2190/de.39.4.e · Cited by 14
Reactions to Physician-Inspired Shame and Guilt
Darby, R. S., Henniger, N. E., & Harris, C. R. (2014) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/01973533.2013.856782 · Cited by 14
Submissiveness in Social Anxiety Disorder: The Role of Interpersonal Perception and Embarrassment
Sadikaj, G., Moskowitz, D. S., Russell, J. J., & Zuroff, D. C. (2015) · Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1521/jscp.2015.34.1.1 · Cited by 14
The Social Psychology of Emotion
Mesquita, B., Marinetti, C., & Delvaux, E. (2012) · SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781446247631.n15 · Cited by 15
Does Shame Still Prevail in China and Guilt Prevail in the U.S.A?
Zhuang, J., & Bresnahan, M. (2016) · Journal of Intercultural Communication Research · doi:10.1080/17475759.2016.1260042 · Cited by 14
Reconstructing social emotions across languages and cultures
Krawczak, K. (2018) · Review of Cognitive Linguistics · doi:10.1075/rcl.00018.kra · Cited by 14
The Neural Correlates of Impaired Self-Monitoring Among Individuals With Neurodegenerative Dementias
Parthimos, T. P., Karavasilis, E., Rankin, K. P., Seimenis, I., Leftherioti, K., Papanicolaou, A. C., Miller, B. L., Papageorgiou, S. G., & Papatriantafyllou, J. D. (2019) · Journal of Neuropsychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.neuropsych.17120349 · Cited by 15
Recalibrational Emotions and the Regulation of Trust-Based BehaviorsPreprint
Schniter, E., & Shields, T. W. (2013) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.2268648 · Cited by 13
Metadata
- Authors
- Tangney, J. P., Miller, R. S., Flicker, L., & Barlow, D. H.
- Affiliations
- George Mason University (US)
- ORCID
- Tangney, June Price
- Venue
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
- Published
- 1996
- Volume
- 70
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 1256-1269
- ISSN
- 0022-3514 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1315
- OpenAlex
- W4241650702
- Cited by
- 1,556
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 83 · 2025: 82 · 2024: 77 · 2023: 77 · 2022: 87 · 2021: 87 · 2020: 101 · 2019: 74 · 2018: 74 · 2017: 88 · 2016: 60 · 2015: 77 · 2014: 80 · 2013: 71 · 2012: 59
- FWCI
- 13.82
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Forgiveness and Related Behaviors
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
- Keywords
- shame, guilt, embarrassment, emotion taxonomy
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Emotions, Female, Guilt, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Shame, Social Behavior, Social Environment
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review