Shame in regulatory settings

“They Look at You like You're Nothing”: Stigma and Shame in the Child Support System

“…I elaborate the relationship between morality, responsibility, deservingness, and poverty identified in other studies (see Schneider and Ingram ) by demonstrating its significance in a previously understudied site of social policy. While there is a great deal of literature discussing the role of shame in the welfare (Gustafson ; Jarrett ; Katz ; Seccombe ) and criminal justice systems (Braithwaite ; Harris ; Lara‐Millán and Van Celeve ), the role of this emotion has been essentially missing from studies of the child support system. Despite the size and scope of the child support system as an area of social policy, its significance for understanding how policy enforcement is relevant in sociological studies of emotion and interaction has not been appreciated.…”

“…Shame represents a threat to social bonds (Scheff ) and is tied to how an individual perceives his appearance (Retzinger ). Shame can manifest as a “painful feeling” and “rapid thought or speech” (Scheff ) or might also be experienced as the perception of personal failure (Harris ). Since shame is the “premier social emotion” (Scheff ), examining its expressions and effects in diverse social settings is valuable.…”

“…Other conceptualizations of shame in the criminal justice system have included any practice that indicates “social disapproval” in the attempt to cause the shamed person to feel remorse and/or to be condemned by others (Braithwaite ). Shame in regulatory settings, such as the criminal justice system, has been conceptualized in two main ways—as a social threat and as personal failure (Harris ). As a social threat, shame reflects the perception of current or future rejection or disapproval, and as personal failure, shame embodies an individual's belief they have not met an ideal or standard (Harris ).…”

“…Shame in regulatory settings, such as the criminal justice system, has been conceptualized in two main ways—as a social threat and as personal failure (Harris ). As a social threat, shame reflects the perception of current or future rejection or disapproval, and as personal failure, shame embodies an individual's belief they have not met an ideal or standard (Harris ). Ultimately, while it has been widely demonstrated that stigma and shame are central in social policy contexts, their role in the child support system is missing nearly entirely from the literature.…”

“…The use of stigma and shame in social interactions in the child support system resulted in many social consequences for the parents involved in the system. The destructive potential of shame, mainly because of the threat to an individual's sense of self, has been extensively documented, particularly in regulatory settings (Harris ). And unacknowledged shame, which many experience due to the taboo nature of this emotion, can result in a host of defensive affects including “hiding behaviors,” “negation of other,” repression, resentment, anger, and violence (Retzinger ).…”