Shame, guilt, narcissism, and depression: Correlates and sex differences.

Abstract

This study examines the relationships between shame, guilt, narcissism, and depression and the gender differences connected with these states. We hypothesize that shame would be a more powerful contributor to narcissism and depres-sion than guilt and that women would score higher in shame, higher in depres-sion, and lower in narcissism than men. The Adapted Shame/Guilt Scale, the Narcissistic Personality Inventory, and the Self-Rating Depression Scale were administered to male and female undergraduates. The results show that shame plays an important role in both narcissism and depression, and that its role in depression is stronger than that of guilt. It was also concluded that men are more prone to narcissism and women to depres-sion, and sex differences related to shame and guilt are linked to specific situa-tions and self-images. Implications for treatment are also noted. Recently, there has been a resurgence of clinical and theoretical interest in the superego. One reason is the expansion of psychoanalytic interest into new territories where superego deficits are paramount (i.e., the preoedipal con-ditions). Kernberg (1984), for example, stated that the two most important considerations in the treatability of borderline and narcissistic states is the quality of the patients ' object relations and the relative integration of their superegos.