The Effect of Inducing Shame and Guilt on Self-Control Performance in Homework in The Students of Shiraz

Introductoin:

 This study aims to study the effect of inducing shame and guilt on self-control performance in homework.

The research was a semi-experimental design with a pre-test and post-test design with a control group. The statistical population was male and female undergraduate students who were studying at Shiraz University in the first semester of the 2020-2021 academic year. The sample consisted of 64 students (26 male and 38 female) who were selected using the available and goal-based sampling, and according to the entry and exit criteria of the three classes of Shiraz University, and completed the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales (DASS), the Self-Control (Tangney, 2004), the Desire for Self-Control (Uziel & Baumeister, 2017) the Shame-Proneness and Guilt-Proneness subscales of Test of Self-Conscious Affect (Tangney, 1989) and the Shame and Guilt Scale. Then participants of the three classes were exposed to experimental intervention by assignment to three groups sham induction, guilt induction, and control. In both experimental groups, shame or guilt was induced by reminding and writing slightly about an experience of the personal fault and their emotions were measured again by the Scale of Shame and Guilt. Eventually, the participants in each of the three groups performed the unsolved puzzle task.

The results showed that the level of self-control of the participants in the group of guilt was more than the group of shame likewise the control group, but there was no significant difference between the level of self-control of the group of shame and the control group.

According to the results, guilt, and shame self-conscious emotions can affect self-control and thus adaptability and persistence of individuals in conflicting situations