Abstract
Shame and guilt are unpleasant emotions that arise in circumstances of moral transgression. However, they are distinct emotions that are not only determined by the situation. Under the same circumstances, some people may feel shame while others may feel guilt. The aim of the current study was to find personality underpinnings (i.e., metatraits and values) of the tendency to feel shame or guilt. We examined 236 young adults aged 18-35 (M = 25.15; SD = 4.44). The tendency to experience shame and guilt was measured using the Test of Self-Conscious Affect-3 (TOSCA-3; Tangney et al, 2000). Values were measured using the Personal Values Questionnaire-RR (PVQ-RR; Schwartz & Cieciuch, 2022). Personality metatraits were measured using the Circumplex of Personality Metatraits Questionnaire – Short Form (CPM-Q-SF; Strus & Cieciuch, 2021). Shame was predicted by personality metatraits (24% of variance explained). After adding values to the model, the metatraits were still statistically significant and the explained variance increased to 40%. Guilt was also predicted by personality metatraits (20% of variance explained), but after adding values to the model, they remained the only statistically significant guilt predictors (44% of variance explained). Thus, we found that shame is predicted by both metatraits (mostly Disharmony) and values (Conservation), while guilt is only predicted by values (Conservation and Self-Transcendence).