Understanding and Working with Shame

Carsten René Jørgensen is a professor of clinical psychology at Aarhus University, Department of Psychology, trained in group analytic psychotherapy and (since 2001) attached to the Clinic for Personality Disorders, Aarhus University Hospital, Skejby, Denmark.

1. Introduction 2. Historical developments in our understanding of shame 3. The phenomenology of shame: How is shame experienced? 3.1 The spectrum of shame: Constructive versus destructive shame 3.2 The subjective experience of shame 4. The basic structure of shame in relation to human sociality 4.1 Sartre’s view: Shame and alienation 4.2 Scheler’s approach: Shame in the encounter of spirit and nature 4.3 Different forms of shame 4.4 Defences against and reactions to shame 4.5 Shame and guilt: Two inherently different moral affects 5. Destructive shame and mental illness 5.1 Eating disorders 5.2 Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 5.3 Borderline personality disorder 5.4 Narcissistic and evasive personality disorder 5.5 Depression, anxiety, self-harm and substance abuse 5.6 Identity disturbances 6. Shame and contemporary culture 6.1 The dark side of individualistic and meritocratic competition societies 6.2 Shame as a driver of escalating conflicts – and cultural polarization 7. Psychotherapeutic work with destructive shame 7.1 The therapist’s stance and actions in the encounter with the patient 8. Conclusion