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The evolution of social attractiveness and its role in shame, humiliation, guilt and therapy
Abstract
This paper suggests that humans have innate needs to be seen as attractive to others. These needs form the basis for shame and mediate evaluations of social standing (status), social acceptance and social bonds. Shame and humiliation are associated with attacks on, and losses of, social attractiveness. The internal experiences of shame are derived from submissive strategies where one seeks to signal to others awareness of loss of social standing and limit possible damage. However, it is suggested that shame and humiliation differ from each other in a number of ways. For example, in shame the focus is on the self, while in humiliation the focus is on the harm done by others. Variations in the defensive strategies of shame and humiliation (e.g. avoidance, escape versus aggression and revenge) can pose particularly difficult problems in therapy. A focus on the role of social attractiveness in shame also allows for important distinctions to be drawn between shame and guilt.
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“Shame is theorized to have evolved to prevent humans from behaving in ways that have a high negative social cost and could result in social devaluation by others and loss of social rank (e.g., cheating, stealing) (89, 90).”
In the citing paper
“Experiences of being “disgraced, devalued, demoted, dishonored, degraded, discredited, humiliated, ridiculed, shunned, ostracized, or scorned” (Gilbert, 1997, p. 113) are signalled to us through the emotion of shame; the feeling there is something flawed, bad or worthless about us (Gilbert, 1989).”
From Is Shame Hallucinogenic? (2017) · cites this paper as Gilbert, 1997
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“Furthermore, not only is shame itself a complex mix of cognition and affect (Gilbert, 1997)”
From Is Shame Hallucinogenic? (2017) · cites this paper as Gilbert, 1997
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Metadata
- Authors
- Gilbert, P.
- Affiliations
- University of Derby (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Gilbert, Paul
- ORCID
- Gilbert, Paul
- Venue
- British Journal of Medical Psychology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 1997-06
- Volume
- 70
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 113-147
- ISSN
- 0007-1129 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1981058655
- Cited by
- 539
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 41 · 2025: 20 · 2024: 23 · 2023: 29 · 2022: 23 · 2021: 29 · 2020: 21 · 2019: 29 · 2018: 30 · 2017: 26 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 22 · 2014: 30 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 27
- FWCI
- 9.25
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- British Journal of Medical Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychoanalysis and Psychopathology Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Forgiveness and Related Behaviors
- Keywords
- social attractiveness, shame, humiliation, guilt, social status, social acceptance, social bonds, defense strategy, avoidance, psychotherapy, evolutionary psychology of emotion
- MeSH terms
- Attention, Mental Disorders, Guilt, Humans, Psychological Theory, Shame, Social Desirability
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