The unwanted exposure of the self: A phenomenological study of embarrassment

Department

Psychological Sciences

Document Type

Article

Publication Source

Humanistic Psychologist

Publication Date

2006-01-01

Volume

34

Issue

4

Abstract

The self-conscious emotion of embarrassment has been the focus of much attention by phenomenological and cognitive researchers in psychology. However, although a variety of theoretical models of embarrassment have been proposed, there has been little consensus in the literature. Through a synthesis of prior theory and empirical research, these authors propose a model of embarrassment in which embarrassment is understood to signify the core, essential theme of a self that has been exposed to unwanted attention. Through an empirical, phenomenological method of analysis of data from 6 undergraduate college students, the authors identify 8 themes of embarrassment and relate them through a structural description of the phenomenon. The findings support the unwanted exposure model of embarrassment. © 2006, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

DOI

10.1207/s15473333thp3404_3

https://doi.org/10.1207/s15473333thp3404_3

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