Whilst shame has an important role in shaping psychopathology, nonetheless it is often a feeling ignored. Therefore, the etiologic role of psychosis requires further investigation.

This study examined the role of internal shame on psychiatric patients.

The present study evaluated internal shame in psychiatric patients who where cared by the Department of Psychiatry at University Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Greece.

45 patients suffering from schizophrenia participated (18 men and 27 women with mean age 44.09 SD=11.55, ranged 19–75). The measuring tools used were: a) the Experience of Shame Scale (ESS), b) a questionnaire concerning socio-demographic information.

High levels of internal shame were observed among patients. In specific, the average of the internal shame (ESS total) was 52.31 ± 12.76, without having statistically significant difference among gender in their comparison with the t-Test (p = .859). This is much higher than the average normal external shame in Greek population (47.09 ± 13.69). The analysis of variance between age groups showed that age, place of residence and educational level did not affect the internal shame in psychotic patients. Marital status had a significant effect on internal shame of psychotic patients where the application of the Bonferonni criterion found that unmarried participants demonstrated a statistical significant difference from those divorced (p = .020), the latter had higher levels of internal shame.

Psychiatric patients have high levels of internal shame and this shame is a constant factor in placing the individual and not a transient response to specific situations.