Interdisciplinary Applications of Shame/Violence Theory Breaking the Cycle

This book takes James Gilligan’s theory of shame and violence as a starting point for an application of the model across disciplines (psychology, sociology, philosophy, political science, cultural studies, history, architecture and urban studies) and levels of analysis (from the individual to the global). It critically engages with shame theory, exploring the existential origins, the emotional, linguistic, cognitive and cultural manifestations and symptoms of shame—in the mind, in the body, in public space and in the civic culture—and its relationship with other emotions, such as anger, guilt and pride. It also examines the role of shame in communities that are at the fault lines of current affairs, identity politics and “culture wars”, such as Brexit, trans rights, and racial equality. The book contributes to the literature on political psychology and psychosocial studies by facilitating an innovative application of the concept of shame: blending theory and practice, focusing on gender as a key lever of the mechanism of shame, and exploring the mechanics of shame and shame awareness, so as to seek and propose a range of guiding principles, practical models and possible solutions for the future.

1. Introduction: An Interdisciplinary Application of Shame/Violence Theory.- 2. Causes and Prevention of Violence: Shame and Guilt in the Individual and Society.- 3. Shame, Gender and Radical Listening.- 4. Shame: An/other View: The Role of Shame in Misrepresenting Existential Anxiety.- 5. 'With the Humble is Wisdom': Humility as an Antidote to Humiliation and Shame.- 6. Making Sense of Shame Feelings in Children and Young People with Developmental Trauma.- 7. Shame/Violence Intervention (SVI).- 8. The Violence Intervention Project (VIP).- 9. Shame and Humiliation as Drivers of Violent Behaviour: A Psychodynamic Analysis of Greek Radical Voters.- 10. The “Deserved” Victimhood of Far-left Terrorism: Shame, Guilt and Status Reversal.- 11. The Dynamics of Pride and Shame in Football Fandom: The Case of FC PAOK (Rosa Vasilaki).- 12. On the Skin of the City: The Shame/Violence Model as a Tool for Interpreting the Unauthorized ‘Programmatic’ Marking of Buildings in Modern Athens.- 13. Memory Landscapes and Stories of Shame: The Coexistence of Greece, Cyprus and Turkey as an Affective ‘Mission Impossible’.- 14. Shameful and Shameless: Projecting Triumph and Humiliation in the Brexit Era - A Psychosocial-Group Methodological Approach.- 15. Living Beyond the Binary: Experiences of Shame and Violence in the Trans Community.- 16. Shame Awareness and Engagement with the Other in Times of Global Malaise: A Manifesto.

Roman Gerodimos is Professor of Global Current Affairs at Bournemouth University, UK, and a Faculty Member at the Salzburg Academy on Media & Global Change, Austria. His research focuses on the challenges facing democracy and global security, and on drivers of civic and global engagement. He is the co-editor of The Media, Political Participation and Empowerment (2013) and The Politics of Extreme Austerity: Greece in the Eurozone Crisis (2015). He has led research projects funded by NATO, the UK Department for International Development, the Independent Social Research Foundation, and the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has also written, directed and produced four short films and a feature length documentary (Deterrence). Roman is the winner of the Political Studies Association’s Arthur McDougall Prize for his research on youth civic engagement, and founder of the Greek Politics Specialist Group of the PSA.