The social origins of gender differences in anticipated feelings of guilt and shame following delinquency
| Author | Stefaan Pleysier,Arne De Boeck,Johan Put |
| DOI | 10.1177/1748895817721273 |
| Published date | 01 July 2018 |
| Date | 01 July 2018 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
https://doi.org/10.1177/1748895817721273
Criminology & Criminal Justice
2018, Vol. 18(3) 291 –313
© The Author(s) 2017
Reprints and permissions:
sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav
DOI: 10.1177/1748895817721273
journals.sagepub.com/home/crj
The social origins of gender
differences in anticipated
feelings of guilt and shame
following delinquency
Arne De Boeck
University of Leuven, Belgium
Stefaan Pleysier
University of Leuven, Belgium
Johan Put
University of Leuven, Belgium
Abstract
In this study, we investigate gender differences in adolescents’ anticipated feelings of guilt and
shame for engaging in shoplifting and retaliatory violence. More specifically, we examine the
extent to which interpersonal relations with parents and teachers, perceived peer delinquency
and traditional gender role beliefs have different effects on levels of shame-guilt among males and
females, and to what extent these variables mediate gender differences in shame-guilt. We use data
collected in a sample of 852 adolescents in Genk, a multi-ethnic city in the north-east of Belgium.
Our findings confirm those of earlier research indicating that females experience a considerably
higher threat of shame-guilt for engaging in delinquency than males. Factors explaining males’ and
females’ anticipated shame-guilt feelings are similar in the case of shoplifting, but different in the
case of violence. Differential exposure to peer delinquency and parental follow-up partially mediate
the effect of gender on shame-guilt for engaging in shoplifting. Among males, endorsement of
traditional masculinity predicts lower levels of shame-guilt for engaging in shoplifting and violence.
Among females, endorsement of traditional femininity predicts lower levels of shame-guilt for
engaging in shoplifting, but has no effect on shame-guilt for engaging in violence. We discuss the
Corresponding author:
Arne De Boeck, PhD student, Leuven Institute of Criminology, University of Leuven, Herbert Hooverplein 10,
3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Email: Arne.DeBoeck@law.kuleuven.be
721273CRJ0010.1177/1748895817721273Criminology & Criminal JusticeBoeck et al.
research-article2017
Article
292 Criminology & Criminal Justice 18(3)
implications of our findings for understanding the contribution of shame-guilt to the social control
of delinquency across gender.
Keywords
Adolescent offending, anticipated guilt, anticipated shame, emotions, gender, identity, shoplifting,
violence
Introduction
Shame and guilt do not only give negative emotional feedback after transgressive behav-
iour, they can also prevent people from engaging in such behaviour in the first place
(Tangney et al., 2007). That is, individuals may anticipate emotional outcomes when con-
sidering alternative lines of action and try to avoid painful emotions (Baumeister et al.,
2007). Criminological research has repeatedly shown that those who anticipate guilt and
shame at the thought of offending consistently report lower levels of offending (Grasmick
and Bursik, 1990; Svensson et al., 2013; Tibbetts, 2003) as well as lower intentions to
engage in future offences (Rebellon et al., 2010). Interestingly, it has also been found that
the threat of guilt and shame is unevenly distributed across gender. Women anticipate
higher levels of guilt and shame than men when considering crime and delinquency (Finley
and Grasmick, 1985; Svensson, 2004; Svensson et al., 2013). Recent studies suggest that
these gender differences explain a considerable portion of the gender gap in self-reported
offending, over and above other factors such as parental monitoring and peer delinquency
(Rebellon et al., 2015, 2016). These findings raise an important follow-up question that has
remained largely unanswered: what are the social origins of the frequently found gender
differences in anticipated feelings of guilt and shame? Answering this question is impor-
tant, not only for better understanding the link between anticipated emotions and offending
in general, but also for further clarifying the gendered nature of social control.
While criminologists have conceived of guilt and shame as moral emotions
(Wikström, 2010), psychologists and philosophers have characterized them primarily
in terms of their distinctive relation to the ‘self’ (Kristjánsson, 2010; Tracy et al.,
2007). Guilt and shame are ‘self-conscious’ emotions that turn the self into an object
of evaluation. They do not simply reveal one’s commitment to moral norms as such,
but equally one’s commitment to the ‘self’ or ‘identity’ that a norm supports. As
argued by many social theorists, an individual’s sense of self is strongly rooted in
interpersonal relationships, affiliation with social groups, the adoption of social roles
and so on. Similarly, self-conscious emotions involve awareness of these social ele-
ments (Baldwin and Baccus, 2004). Following these insights, this contribution out-
lines and empirically tests several hypotheses about the social origins of males’ and
females’ anticipated guilt and shame feelings following two types of delinquency:
shoplifting and violence. More specifically, we examine the extent to which interper-
sonal relations with parents and teachers, perceived peer delinquency and traditional
gender role ideologies are (differentially) related to anticipated guilt and shame
among males and females. We also examine the extent to which these variables medi-
ate gender differences in anticipated guilt and shame.
To continue reading
Request your trial