Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology
From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame
Ahmet Sapancı 1 * , Mustafa Kumru 2
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1 Düzce University Department of Psychological Counseling and Guidance, Düzce, Türkiye
2 Istanbul Esenyurt Guidance and Research Center, Istanbul, Türkiye
* Corresponding Author
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ARTICLE INFO

Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology, 2025 - Volume 7 Issue 2, pp. 135-145
https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484

Article Type: Research Article

Published Online: 19 Aug 2025

Views: 2 | Downloads: 2

ABSTRACT
This study examines the mediating roles of guilt and shame in the relationship between defense styles—mature, neurotic, and immature—and the need for social approval in a non-clinical Turkish adult sample. A total of 336 participants, predominantly aged 18–25, completed standardized measures assessing defense styles, social approval, and moral emotions. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlations and bootstrapped mediation models with 5,000 resamples. Results showed that mature defenses had no direct effect on social approval; however, guilt significantly mediated the relationship, indicating that these defenses may reduce approval needs through adaptive guilt regulation. Neurotic defenses demonstrated both direct and indirect effects via shame, suggesting that shame amplifies the link between these defenses and higher approval-seeking. Immature defenses also showed both direct and indirect effects, with guilt serving as a significant mediator, reflecting the role of maladaptive guilt in strengthening approval needs. These findings indicate that defense styles influence social approval through distinct emotional pathways, with guilt central for mature and immature defenses, and shame for neurotic defenses. The results highlight the cultural relevance of moral emotions in shaping social motivation in collectivist contexts and suggest that interventions promoting adaptive guilt regulation and effective shame management may help reduce maladaptive approval-seeking behaviors.
KEYWORDS
collectivist culture defense mechanisms guilt mediation shame social approval
In-text citation: (Sapancı & Kumru, 2025)
Reference: Sapancı, A., & Kumru, M. (2025). From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame. Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology, 7(2), 135-145. https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484
In-text citation: (1), (2), (3), etc.
Reference: Sapancı A, Kumru M. From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame. Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology. 2025;7(2), 135-145. https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484
In-text citation: (1), (2), (3), etc.
Reference: Sapancı A, Kumru M. From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame. Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology. 2025;7(2):135-45. https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484
In-text citation: (Sapancı and Kumru, 2025)
Reference: Sapancı, Ahmet, and Mustafa Kumru. "From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame". Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology 2025 7 no. 2 (2025): 135-145. https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484
In-text citation: (Sapancı and Kumru, 2025)
Reference: Sapancı, A., and Kumru, M. (2025). From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame. Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology, 7(2), pp. 135-145. https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484
In-text citation: (Sapancı and Kumru, 2025)
Reference: Sapancı, Ahmet et al. "From defense styles to social approval: Divergent mediating effects of guilt and shame". Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology, vol. 7, no. 2, 2025, pp. 135-145. https://doi.org/10.33902/jpsp.202538484
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