Pakistani Immigrants' Nuanced Beliefs About Shame and Its Regulation

Abstract

Abstract. The present study explored beliefs about shame and coping strategies of Pakistani immigrants to Canada, without imposing Western definitions or theories. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 18 adult Pakistani immigrants to Canada who immigrated within the last 8 years. Grounded theory was used to uncover and illuminate how shame could act as a signal for wrongdoing or emerge as a result of social control and social hierarchies, while in both instances being shaped by and informing complex relational and social contexts. Participants accessed a wide range of positive and negative coping behaviors and prioritized positive coping strategies which included close others and focused on self-improvement. The findings highlight the need for researchers to expand current definitions of shame to render them more inclusive of non-Western worldviews and to honor the diversity in metacognitions or beliefs about shame present in different cultural groups. Future research may also benefit from exploring how shame may be felt as a response to power differentials, and how this may impact individuals' experiences of immigration. It is important for practitioners working with Pakistani immigrants to Canada to honor clients' nuanced and complex cultural and religious knowledge about shame, as Pakistani immigrants' beliefs about shame and their proactive stance toward the regulation of this emotion are likely to be protective. We also encourage therapists to be open to discussing sources of shame (e.g., personal vs. imposed by others) and systemic, structural inequalities which may be important in explaining individuals' emotional experience.