Linda M. Hartling

Humiliation: Assessing the Impact of Derision, Degradation, and Debasement

This paper describes the development of a self-report scale to assess the internal experience of humiliation. After defining the construct, an item pool of 149 items was generated, utilizing a five-point Likert scale response format. A sample of 253 individuals ages 15 to 51 (M= 20.66) was used to conduct the item trial. The item pool was evaluated through item and factor analyses. Factor analysis identified two correlated factors accounting for 58% of scale variability. The 20 items loading on factor one were labeled the Fear of Humiliation Subscale and the 12 items loading on factor two were labeled the Cumulative Humiliation Subscale. The full scale of 32 items is called the Humiliation Inventory. Reliability analyses indicate that the subscales and the full scale have high internal consistency. Exploratory analyses of mean scores across six demographic groups indicate significant differences between male and female mean scores on the total scale and the two subscales.

Strengthening Resilience in a Risky World: It's All About Relationships

SUMMARY Building on Judith Jordans earlier work on relational resilience, this paper challenges the commonly held view that resilience is a unique form of individual “toughness” endowed to a lucky few and suggests that resilience can be strengthened in all people through participation in growth-fostering relationships. The author reviews the research describing individual, internal characteristics associated with resilience and explores the relational aspects of these characteristics. A case example illustrates that efforts promoting relational development help people grow through and beyond experiences of hardship and adversity. In addition, the author proposes specific ways resilience can be strengthened through engagement in relationships that enhance ones intellectual development, sense of worth, sense of competence, sense of empowerment, and, most importantly, sense of connection.

Relational-Cultural Practice: Working in a Nonrelational World

SUMMARY While more and more clinicians are practicing a relational-cultural approach to therapy, many work in settings that continue to reinforce the normative values of separation and disconnection. Consequently, practitioners face the challenges of helping clients heal and grow-through-connection while navigating work settings that are all too often professionally disempowering, disconnecting, and isolating, i.e., “cultures of disconnection.” This article begins a conversation about the complexities of practicing Relational-Cultural Theory in nonrelational work situations and explores new possibilities for creating movement and change in these settings.

Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies: A Global Network Advancing Dignity through Dialogue.

Human rights are universally based on the concept of human dignity. Various international organizations are developing the theoretical, legal, and political framework for human rights. The underlying concept of human dignity is less disputed, but also receives less attention. This shortcoming is addressed by a worldwide group of scholars and practitioners dedicated to examining and understanding the many aspects of human dignity, as well as its violation – humiliation. This article describes the efforts of the Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS) network. The network is a global transdisciplinary fellowship of individuals dedicated to advancing research, education, and interventions to end humiliating practices and promote human dignity around the world. The HumanDHS community strives to stimulate systemic change, globally and locally, opening space for mutual respect and esteem to take root and grow, thus ending humiliating practices and breaking cycles of humiliation. This article describes the efforts of HumanDHS to encourage practices that lead to equality in dignity through dignifying dialogue and collaborative action.

Can Systemic Humiliation Be Transformed into Systemic Dignity

The United States, as in other nations, is in the midst of a social-climate crisis inflamed by a staggering economic gap between the rich and the poor, a polarized and paralyzed political system, a history of criminal injustice that has led to mass incarceration of marginalized populations, a proliferation of gun violence and rampage shootings, and much more. The contentious conditions shaping social relations in the United States are also evident in the atmosphere of heated interactions surging in the world.

Toward a globally informed psychology of humiliation: Comment on McCauley (2017).

There has never been a more urgent time for psychologists to gain a broader and deeper understanding of the pernicious dynamics of humiliation. Congratulations to the American Psychologist for introducing an article on the topic of humiliation and asymmetric conflict. Based on more than 20 years of research, a global community of scholars has established humiliation studies as a field of academic inquiry and has built a solid foundation of expertise on the phenomenon of humiliation and its impact. Open violence is only the tip of the iceberg. This commentary offers substantial clarifications and updates in support of McCauleys article and invites psychologists to recognize their vital role in developing research and clinical practice to address the explosive consequences of humiliation around the globe. (PsycINFO Database Record