An introduction to the Body-Related Self-Conscious Emotions (BSE) Scale

Abstract

Most body image research has adopted a narrow view by focusing on the general negative emotion of anxiety. Research and health practice would benefit by targeting specific body-related emotional experiences of shame, guilt, and pride. The purpose of the current study was to examine reliability (internal consistency, temporal stability) and validity (factorial, convergent) of the BSE scale. Men (n=77) and women (n=223; Mage=22.4 ± 6.1 yrs; 72% Caucasian; MBMI = 23.2 ± 4.1 kg/m2) completed the BSE scale and various body image, personality, and emotion scales. A random sample (n=37; 38% male) completed the BSE scale two weeks later. The BSE scale scores demonstrated Cronbach's alpha coefficients of .91-.95 and stability over time (ICC =.75 - .88, p < .001) for shame, guilt, and authentic and hubristic pride. CFA supported the 4-factor structure for the BSE scale (c2(293)=623.46, p < .001, Robust CFI=.93, RMSEA=.06 (90% CI=.06-.07), SRMR=.05). Shame and guilt were related to depressive symptoms (DS; r=.52, .41), negative affect (NA; r=.54, .43), self-esteem (SE; r=-.41, -.33), positive affect (PA; r=-.38, -.31), and social physique anxiety (SPA; r=.73, .58). Authentic pride was linked to SE (r=.14), PA (r=.46), conscientiousness (r=.13) , agreeableness (r=.18), SPA (r=-.36), DS (r=-.30), and NA (r=-.22). Hubristic pride was associated with SE (r=.15), PA (r=.38), SPA (r=-.41), DS (r=-.23), and NA (r=-.17). The development and validation of the BSE scale may help advance body image and self-conscious emotion research by providing a foundation to examine the unique antecedents and outcomes of these specific emotional experiences.

Acknowledgments: Castonguay is supported by a SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship. Dr. Sabiston is a FRSQ Junior 1 Scholar.