Abstract
Thirty-nine adults from mainland China (MC) and 34 adults of European descent from Canada (EC) were recruited and presented with five types of shame concepts (xiu chi, can kui, diu lian, xiu kui, and nan wei qing) and four types of guilt (nei jiu-1—harm to others, nei jiu-2—trust violation, zui e gan, and fan zui gan), which were based on Mandarin shame and guilt categories to recall or generate different situations for different types of shame and guilt. The responses were coded into themes, which were organized into eight higher order categories. Both cultures had “breaking own expectations,” “breaking other’s expectations,” and “intentional breaking social norms/rules” higher order categories. Chi-square analyses suggested that the main difference between cultures was in the higher order guilt category of “other’s improper actions”; ECs were more likely to associate guilt feelings with other people’s improper actions than MCs were. Moreover, within cultural differences between shame and guilt were also found. Euro-Canadian seemed to recognize the breadth of shame and guilt despite lacking the same terms. The results confirm that shame and guilt may be universal, but that cultural background moderates their experiences.
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Appendix: Survey
Appendix: Survey
The following questions ask you to recall a personal and potential distressing event. Please answer them as honestly as possible. Note that your answers will be completely anonymous, and you are free to not answer any question, or to discontinue participation at any time. Please answer the following questions in Mandarin.
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1.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: guilt aboutharming another person. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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2.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: guilt abouttrust violation. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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3.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: guilt (zui e gan) aboutbreaking moral. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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4.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: guilt (fan zui gan) about breaking the law or rules. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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5.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: shame (xiu chi) about verydeep shame (Feeling of shame that occurs with perceived social failure; A stain on the face). In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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6.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: shame (can kui) about feeling of shame that occurs with failure to attain apersonal ideal. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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7.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: shame (diu lian) aboutloss of face (Feeling of shame that occurs with loss of reputation or standing in the eyes of others). In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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8.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: shame (xiu kui) about feeling of shame occasioned by perceived personal failure resulting in harm to someone else. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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9.
Imagine a time when you experienced the following emotion: shame (nan wei qing) about embarrassment due tosocial impropriety. In the space below, please describe the situation in as much detail as possible.
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Su, C., Hynie, M. (2019). A Cross-Cultural Study on the Experience of Shame and Guilt. In: Zangeneh, M., Al-Krenawi, A. (eds) Culture, Diversity and Mental Health - Enhancing Clinical Practice. Advances in Mental Health and Addiction. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-26437-6_14
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