Shame is a painful emotion that emerges when one's self-image is threatened by feelings of being bad, worthless, weak, exposed, isolated, and unlovable. The present study aims to validate the international French adaptation of the Experience of Shame Scale (ESS), a self-report questionnaire assessing characterological, behavioral, and bodily shame by identifying eight areas of occurrence. A total of 314 French-Canadian adult participants completed online self-report questionnaires assessing psychological constructs relevant to shame assessment along with the ESS. The validation process explored: (a) internal consistency; (b) gender differences; (c) temporal reliability; (d) factor structure using Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling; (e) concurrent validity using the Test of Self-Conscious Affect 3; and (f) convergent-discriminant validity with self-report measures of pathological narcissism, borderline traits, depression, self-esteem, and guilt. Results show that the internal consistency and test-retest reliability for the whole questionnaire and its subscales were good to excellent. Factor structure did not replicate the original three-factor structure of the instrument, as the best fit indices were obtained for the eight-factor solution in which each factor corresponds to an area of occurrence of shame reported in the original version of the instrument. Expected correlations with external indices of convergentdiscriminant validity were found. Overall, results from the current study support the validity and reliability of the international French adaptation of the ESS in a French-Canadian sample. They also contribute to the ongoing debates regarding the nature and associations of shame with related constructs. Public Significance StatementShame is a construct that is relevant to research, clinical psychology, and psychotherapy. Consequently, it is of high importance to have access to well-validated instruments to assess shame in various contexts, including psychotherapy. This study provides a validated French version of the Experience of Shame Scale for researchers and clinicians.

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Abstract. While shame is sometimes discussed as a key element at the core of personality pathologies, its relationship with pathological personality traits is still understudied. Previous research suggested that shame is a common subjective experience in patients with borderline and narcissistic personality traits. However, little is known about how borderline and narcissistic traits are associated with specific areas of shame in community samples. The present study aims to investigate these associations, using a dual strategy, that is, both at “variable-level” using correlational analyses and at “person-level” using a cluster-analytic strategy with borderline and narcissistic (grandiose and vulnerable) personality traits as clustering variables. A total of 254 French-Canadian adult participants were recruited to complete an online battery of self-report questionnaires. Correlational analyses revealed that borderline-related traits and narcissistic vulnerability showed some significant and meaningful differences pertaining to Behavioral shame while sharing a similar pattern of associations with Characterological and Bodily shame. Alternatively, shame does not appear to be a strong correlate of narcissistic grandiosity, although some significant – and somewhat unexpected – positive associations between the two were found. Cluster analysis yielded four groups based on their levels of pathological traits; the groups showed indiscriminate associations with different shame areas, suggesting that the association between shame and pathological traits is more global and less area specific.

Objectifs La honte est un sentiment douloureux qui surgit lorsqu’une personne a l’impression d’avoir commis une offense ou contrevenu à un standard personnel ou moral. Les expériences de honte sont souvent intenses et entraînent une évaluation globale négative de soi ; la personne a alors le sentiment d’être mauvaise, faible, sans valeur, ou de mériter le mépris d’autrui. Certaines personnes sont davantage portées à ressentir de la honte. Bien que cette dernière ne figure pas à titre de critère diagnostique du trouble de personnalité limite (TPL) dans le DSM-5, des études scientifiques suggèrent que la honte est un sentiment caractéristique chez les personnes présentant ce trouble. L’objectif de la présente étude est d’apporter des indices supplémentaires afin de documenter la propension à la honte chez les personnes présentant une symptomatologie limite à partir de données issues de la population québécoise. Méthode Un total de 646 adultes provenant de la population générale québécoise ont répondu en ligne à la version courte de la Borderline Symptom List (BSL-23), qui mesure la sévérité des symptômes associés au TPL selon une perspective dimensionnelle, ainsi qu’à l’Experience of Shame Scale (ESS) mesurant la propension à la honte dans différentes sphères de la vie d’une personne. Les participants et participantes ont été divisés en 4 groupes sur la base de leurs symptômes limites, selon la classification de Kleindienst et collaborateurs (2020), et comparés quant à leurs scores de honte : a) peu ou pas de symptômes limites (n = 173) ; b) symptômes faibles (n = 316) ; c) symptômes modérés (n = 103) ; d) degrés élevés, très élevés ou extrêmement élevés de symptômes limites (n = 54). Résultats Des différences entre les groupes avec de grandes tailles d’effet dans toutes les sphères mesurées par l’ESS ont été relevées, suggérant que la honte a tendance à être plus importante chez les personnes présentant des traits limites plus marqués. Conclusion Les résultats sont discutés dans une perspective clinique du TPL, en mettant l’accent sur l’importance de faire de la honte une cible d’intervention en psychothérapie chez cette clientèle. De plus, ces résultats soulèvent des questions d’ordre conceptuel quant à la place significative que la honte devrait occuper dans le diagnostic et le traitement du TPL.

Miller et al. (2010) previously suggested that borderline pathology, vulnerable narcissism, and Factor 2 psychopathy share a common “Vulnerable Dark Triad” (VDT) core. The present study (N = 1,023 community participants) aims to test that hypothesis using exploratory and confirmatory bifactor analyses. We found support for a bifactor model that obtained satisfactory fits and other adequate validity indices, which included a general VDT factor and three group factors (Reckless, Entitled, Hiding). The general VDT factor was mostly saturated with borderline symptoms items reflecting self‐hatred and worthlessness, which did not form a group factor; these results add to previous research suggesting that features of borderline pathology may represent the core of personality pathology. The three group factors had distinctive relationships with Dark Triad traits, pathological trait domains, and aggression. In contrast with the three group factors, the general VDT factor more strongly incremented the prediction of negative affectivity and hostility; the group factors more strongly incremented the prediction of grandiosity, egocentrism, callousness, Machiavellianism, and direct (physical/verbal) aggression. Alignment of the retained bifactor model with influent models of personality pathology and conceptual/methodological implications of the present results for research on the hypothesized VDT are discussed, as well as some clinical implications of the findings.