Why do you feel ashamed?

"Don't be ashamed, just get used to her" boldly, do you see this advice familiar?

Embarrassed and embarrassed is an unpleasant feeling, which many people recommend to avoid. It appears on everyone, every culture. So why do humans, intelligent creatures dominate the Earth, maintain their sense of shame?

There is a theory that shame is an incident of evolution, even pathology for humans. But it turned out not really. A new study by the University of California, USA shows that feeling of shame plays a particularly important role. It involves human survival in the past and maintains many civilized elements in modern society.

In the past, shameless you will die

Do not be ashamed, please boldly get to know her.

As you know, 'the pain of the body has a function. It restricts us from damaging more tissues , 'said evolutionary psychologist Daniel Sznycer of the University of California, USA. Similarly, 'the function of shame is to prevent us from harming our social relationships , or to prompt us to heal them when we encounter problems'.

According to the researchers, shame has a power and appeared from prehistoric times. It forces people to behave so that others accept themselves in the community. At this point, it directly affects human survival.

'Our ancestors used to live in small communities. They cooperate and live by gathering and hunting. In this age, your life depends on other people in the community who value you. They will see if it is worthwhile to give you and your children food, protection and care , 'said anthropologist John Tooby, a member of the research team.

'The more appreciated you are by other individuals, the more likely your welfare will be concerned. You will get more help and less harm , ' said Tooby. Conversely, when your value drops in the community, they will help you less and hurt more.

Therefore, the feeling of shame prevents you from giving signals that make others underestimate you. You lie, cover up the truth, your weakness because of shame. That's also your own survival. Suppose you are not shameless, you will die. Scientists call that 'embarrassing information theory'.

Shame in modern society

In prehistoric society, shameless you will die.

Until modern life, social assessment no longer greatly affects the survival of an individual. Even so, the function of feeling shy has not changed. Researchers describe it to give you the motivation to make decisions. Shame makes you not trigger an act that will reduce your value in the eyes of others. In a modern way, it is keeping face.

For example, do you feel embarrassed when you wear pajamas on the street, when you have to beg others. Most of us feel apprehensive. In this case, the shame mechanism limits many such behaviors that are common in society.

'What's important here?' , Sznycer said. 'It 's our ancestral society that programmed as a nervous program . It has kept you interested in the past so far as to see how other people value themselves. The feeling of shame motivates you to avoid or hide things, making others underestimate you. '

To measure exactly how shame feels in modern society, researchers have experimented with 900 participants. They come from 3 countries: United States, India and Israel.

A group of participants are asked to evaluate others, based on their behavior, in some fictional scenarios. These behaviors lead to loss of value, including: stinginess, betrayal, physical weakness . The other group is asked about their own feelings, when expressing these behaviors. Do they feel embarrassed, and if so, how bad is it?

The results of the study are reported in the Proceedings of the American Academy of Sciences. It shows shame is an emotion in tune with the judgment of others. It retains its own inherent meaning.'We observed a very close connection between the loss of value in the eyes of others and the intensity of shame , ' Cosmides said.

Shame is specially adjusted for each local community.

Another important feature, because research is conducted on three community groups in 3 different countries, researchers can compare in a very objective way.'We think shame is adjusted specifically for the local community , ' Cosmides said.

That means some embarrassing behaviors in this community may not be important in other communities. The reason why you live there means you need the help of the people there. You can see that Japanese people always bow their heads to other people, but in some countries nobody does it. They are ashamed.

However, some behaviors cause shame and no difference, such as stinginess, lack of ambition, and infidelity. Scientists call it a 'universal' reaction , not limited to culture.

Conclude

Thus, new research by US scientists has helped us decipher a part of human embarrassment. You may feel very uncomfortable in this situation. Embarrassing you can't get acquainted with a girl, can't sing in front of your friends and sometimes lie. But unexpectedly, the role of shame is very important.

In the past, shame meant human survival and now it contributes to maintaining civilization in society. Just imagine, one day, when we don't know shame, how will things turn upside down?