Shame in Korean Language: Factor Analysis of Shame-Related Adjectives

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate shame-related adjectives in the Korean language and to explore the factor structure of these adjectives. Methods: Shame-related words were extracted from an adjectives checklist, the Korean Dictionary, the Korean Synonym Dictionary, and various shame scales developed by Western investigators. A questionnaire (the Korean Shame Scale: KSS) was constructed from 62 selected adjectives, and administered to 210 college students and 204 adults. The subjects also completed the Beck Depression Inventory, the Brief-Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale, the Social Avoidance and Distress Scale, the Revised Cheek & Buss Shyness Scale, and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale. Results: principal component analysis of the KSS data revealed a four factor structure: mortification, modesty, shyness, and embarrassment. All except the modesty factor showed significant correlations with depression, fear of negative evaluation, social avoidance and distress, and shyness. The college student group reported experiencing a shame-related distressful emotion more frequently than the adult group. Conclusion: Shame was found to be a complex psychological construct composed of quite different emotions. These emotions not only included painful feelings and uncomfortable self-consciousness, but were also related to personality traits and interpersonal attitudes.