EMBARRASSMENT - ITS DISTINCT FORM AND APPEASEMENT FUNCTIONS

The authors address 2 questions about embarrassment, First, is embarra ssment a distinct emotion? The evidence indicates that the antecedents , experience, and display of embarrassment, and to a limited extent it s autonomic physiology, are distinct from shame, guilt, and amusement and share the dynamic, temporal characteristics of emotion. Second,Wha t are the theoretical accounts of embarrassment? Three accounts focus on the causes of embarrassment, positing that it follows the loss of s elf-esteem, concern for others' evaluations, or absence of scripts to guide interactions. A fourth account focuses on the effects of the rem edial actions of embarrassment which correct preceding transgressions, A fifth account focuses on the functional parallels between embarrass ment and nonhuman appeasement. The discussion focuses on unanswered qu estions about embarrassment.