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The psychological literature has re-awakened its interest in shame. Research demonstrates that shame is negatively linked with intimacy through direct and indirect associations with intimacy fear and intimacy levels. This study explored the pathways between trait shame and perceived risk in intimacy. We hypothesised there would be an indirect relationship between shame and risk in intimacy via associations with introjective (self-definition) and anaclitic (dependent) personality orientation, identity impairment and abandonment concerns. University students (N = 501) from New Zealand and Northern Ireland completed an online survey, and path analysis was used to analyse data. Some support for the hypotheses was found, with shame being positively associated with risk in intimacy and half the magnitude of the effect operating indirectly through introjective orientation. Shame was positively associated with anaclitic personality, abandonment concerns and identity impairment, but these latter variables were not associated with risk in intimacy. Moreover, anaclitic orientation was associated with abandonment concerns and introjective orientation was associated with identity impairment. These findings extend the literature by demonstrating that shame may impact on feelings of intimacy risk directly and indirectly via introjective personality orientation. The results are consistent with research that shame has negative associations with intimacy, while also demonstrating that shame can be linked to approach behaviours via anaclitic personality orientation. This study provides further evidence of the complex nature and multifaceted effects of shame., Author(s): Chris Wu [sup.1] , Martin J. Dorahy [sup.1] , Craig M. Johnston [sup.2] , Katharina Näswall [sup.1] , Donncha Hanna [sup.3] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.21006.35, 0000 0001 2179 4063, [...]

Some evidence in non-clinical groups suggests that the relationship context in which dissociation is experienced might moderate its association with shame. The current study used vignettes detailing either dissociative symptoms or the expression of sadness occurring in three different relationship contexts: with a friend, an acquaintance, or when alone. Ratings of emotional (e.g. shame, anxiety) and behavioral (e.g. leave, talk) reactions were made on single-item measures, and shame feelings were further assessed with the State Shame Scale. Participants were in treatment for either dissociative identity disorder (n = 31) or other specified dissociative disorder (n = 3; N = 34). Feelings of shame were elevated in the acquaintance condition compared to when with a close friend or alone regardless of whether dissociation or sadness was experienced. In the acquaintance context, participants exposed to dissociation or sadness reported feeling annoyed at themselves, having a greater desire to leave, and a lesser desire to talk compared to when these experiences happened with a close friend or alone. Results suggest those with a dissociative disorder appraise themselves as more vulnerable to shame if experiencing dissociation or sadness when with an acquaintance, potentially because the risk of not being understood and rejected is heightened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between a reported history of trauma and dissociative symptoms has been explained in 2 conflicting ways. Pathological dissociation has been conceptualized as a response to antecedent traumatic stress and/or severe psychological adversity. Others have proposed that dissociation makes individuals prone to fantasy, thereby engendering confabulated memories of trauma. We examine data related to a series of 8 contrasting predictions based on the trauma model and the fantasy model of dissociation. In keeping with the trauma model, the relationship between trauma and dissociation was consistent and moderate in strength, and remained significant when objective measures of trauma were used. Dissociation was temporally related to trauma and trauma treatment, and was predictive of trauma history when fantasy proneness was controlled. Dissociation was not reliably associated with suggestibility, nor was there evidence for the fantasy model prediction of greater inaccuracy of recovered memory. Instead, dissociation was positively related to a history of trauma memory recovery and negatively related to the more general measures of narrative cohesion. Research also supports the trauma theory of dissociation as a regulatory response to fear or other extreme emotion with measurable biological correlates. We conclude, on the basis of evidence related to these 8 predictions, that there is strong empirical support for the hypothesis that trauma causes dissociation, and that dissociation remains related to trauma history when fantasy proneness is controlled. We find little support for the hypothesis that the dissociation-trauma relationship is due to fantasy proneness or confabulated memories of trauma. (Contains 1 figure and 5 tables.)

This study examined the experiences of shame and guilt in adult males sexually abused as children. Seven participants attending a service for male sexual abuse completed measures of shame, guilt, dissociation, and childhood trauma history and subsequently participated in a focus group. All participants experienced childhood sexual abuse in the "severe" range and showed elevated scores for shame, guilt, and dissociation. Four superordinate themes with associated subordinate themes emerged: (a) self-as-shame (foundations of self-as-shame, fear of exposure, temporary antidote: connection), (b) pervasiveness and power of doubt and denial (from others, from self, consequences of incredulity), (c) uncontrollability (of problems after disclosure, of rage, of intrusions and emotional pain), and (d) dissociation. Results are discussed with reference to the existing literature and the emerging "self-as-shame" construct, which appeared to encapsulate participants' view of themselves. (Contains 3 tables.)

Following a significant earthquake police are a large first responder group involved in victim recovery, civil emergencies and community support. They are also exposed to the everyday work and non-work related disruptions associated with the disaster. Conservation of resources (COR) theory offers a framework for understanding longer-term health outcomes associated with disasters in this group. Using a mixed methods approach we surveyed coping resources and psychological health outcomes in police (sworn and non-sworn) working during the 2010-2011 earthquakes in Christchurch (New Zealand). Free text responses (n = 322) from the quantitative survey were subject to a directed qualitative content analysis. Initial data coding used four categories derived from COR theory then inductively grouped into a typology of losses and gains. Resource losses included on-going issues with insurance providers, damage and threat of loss to home, financial insecurity, and loss of social connectedness, lack of employer recognition and job threat. Resource gains included enhanced self-efficacy, posttraumatic growth and pride in contributing as police during the critical periods. COR theory was conceptually a good fit for the data, and underscored the dominance of disaster-associated day-to-day resource losses. Implications for staff support and wellbeing, and foci of future welfare interventions are considered., In the early hours of September 4th 2010 the first of a series of significant earthquakes struck the Canterbury region of New Zealand (NZ). This first earthquake measured 7.1 on [...]

Cognitive models of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) assert that memory processes play a significant role in PTSD (see e.g., Ehlers & Clark, 2000). Intrusive reexperiencing in PTSD has been linked to perceptual processing of trauma-related material with a corresponding hypothesized lack of conceptual processing. In an experimental study that included clinical participants with and without PTSD (N = 50), perceptual priming and conceptual priming for trauma-related, general threat, and neutral words were investigated in a population with chronic trauma-induced complaints as a result of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The study used a new version of the word-stem completion task (Michael, Ehlers, & Halligan, 2005) and a word-cue association task. It also assessed the role of dissociation in threat processing. Further evidence of enhanced perceptual priming in PTSD for trauma stimuli was found, along with evidence of lack of conceptual priming for such stimuli. Furthermore, this pattern of priming for trauma-related words was associated with PTSD severity, and state dissociation and PTSD group made significant contributions to predicting perceptual priming for trauma words. The findings shed light on the importance of state dissociation in trauma-related information processing and posttraumatic symptoms. Keywords: posttraumatic stress disorder, perceptual priming, conceptual priming, dissociation DOI: 10.1037/a0020894

This study examined the contribution of complex posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis and symptomatology to the difficulties of anger, aggression, and self-harm in a Northern Ireland clinical community sample. A 'current complex PTSD' (CCPTSD) group (n = 11) was compared with a 'current PTSD' group (n = 31) on self-report measures of these variables. The CCPTSD group demonstrated significantly higher levels of physical aggression and self-harm than the PTSD group. The complex PTSD symptom of 'alterations in self-perception' was a significant predictor of aggression and history of self-harm, suggesting the potential role of posttraumatic shame and self-loathing in PTSD theoretical models of these destructive behaviors. Social desirability was a notable confounding influence in the assessment of anger, aggression, and self-harm in traumatised individuals. Keywords: PTSD; Complex PTSD; DESNOS; anger; aggression; self-harm; social desirability

If heterosexual male victims had been more active in the #MeToo movement, how might they have been judged? Although the #MeToo movement has been regarded as an historic milestone for women who were victimized by men in positions of power, participation in the movement by male victims has been noticeably absent. Research indicates that victims may avoid disclosure if they anticipate negative social reactions, and male victims may attract greater levels of victim blaming than female victims, particularly if their perpetrator was female. The current study investigated attributions of victim blame against a fictional heterosexual male in a between-subjects vignette design. Perpetrator gender and their social influence were manipulated in a sample of 208 college students. Results did not support the hypothesized main effects of perpetrator gender or social influence. Greater blame attributions were made against victims of a male perpetrator compared to one of an unspecified gender. Male participants attributed greater blame than females, and the relationship between shame proneness and blame was moderated by participant gender, males experiencing higher levels of shame engaged in less victim blame. Blame increased when participants believed the court case to be more distressing than the victimizing act. Results support the male rape myth framework, which posits that beliefs about a male victim's experience of his own violation, particularly whether he experienced distress or pleasure, are related to gendered norms of masculinity, which include normative traits of toughness, dominance, and high sexual performance. Implications on the role of gender as a barrier to disclosure by male victims are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]