This paper discusses honor and its effects on emotion. The paper is divided into two parts. In the first part, the definition of honor is discussed. This section answers the questions ‘what is honor,’ and ‘are there different types of honor?’ Later, there is an overview on the ways in which honor influences emotional experiences and expressions. Throughout the paper, conclusions are reached based on honor and emotion research in Mediterranean, Northern European, North American and Middle-Eastern cultures.

Imagine as a 7-year-old not knowing the meaning of the word shame. This would seem rather improbable to you if you were raised in a culture that values honor. Growing up, you most likely heard some variation of the word every day from parents, teachers, or siblings. However, this familiarity with shame does not extend to all cultures. For example, research has shown that Dutch children seem to learn about the emotion much later than Spanish children.

A cross-cultural study on emotional narratives asked 7-year-old Spanish and Dutch children to describe situations in which they felt shame. While Spanish children gave full narratives of the antecedents and consequences of shame, the Dutch children reported not knowing the meaning of shame (Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fischer, 2000). The Dutch children were neither less educated nor less intelligent than their Spanish peers; rather, they were from a culture that emphasizes different values. The Spanish children knew more about shame because this emotion improves social relations in the honor-oriented culture in which they live. Since we typically feel shame in response to a moral wrongdoing (Gausel & Leach, 2011; Smith, Webster, Parrott, & Eyre, 2002; Tangney & Dearing, 2002), expressing our shame to others is like an apology: we communicate our desire for others to forgive us and think well of us. Because honor is dependent on a good reputation, shame has a positive function for those who value honor.

The Nature of Honor

For some, honor may be an old-fashioned notion, a remnant of a distant past when men responded swiftly to minimal affronts to their manliness and women fought to remain chaste and pure. Still, beyond images of duels and chivalry, honor remains important in many contemporary cultures. Honor is a complex system of values, norms, and practices organized around four themes. These four themes create four types of honor, or honor codes: morality-based, family-based, feminine, and masculine honor (see e.g., Abu-Lughod, 1999; Gilmore, 1987; Jakubowska, 1989; Peristiany, 1965). We will describe next each of these honor codes, and how they vary across cultures and gender.

The nature of morality-based honor is encapsulated in Shakespeare’s famous quote: “Honesty is the best policy. If I lose mine honor, I lose myself.” Indeed, morality-based honor is centered on honesty and trust, and is the most universal type of honor. This is demonstrated by the fact that it is equally valued in Spanish, Dutch, Pakistani, and European-American culture.

In one study, Spanish and Dutch adults were asked to complete the honor scale, a psychological instrument that measures the extent to which an individual values each type of honor (Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fischer, 2002a). The scale includes 24 items that describe behaviors and reputations that violate the honor codes. Participants are asked to report ‘how bad they would feel about themselves’ if they exhibited behavior or had the reputation described in each item. Morality-based honor is measured with items such as “you had the reputation of being dishonest to others” or “you lied to others.” The Spanish and Dutch participants both reported feeling very bad in response to items involving immoral behavior and items in which they were known as being immoral. Furthermore, the same pattern of results emerged when comparing the scores of Pakistani and European-American adults on the morality-based honor items of the honor scale (Rodriguez Mosquera, Tan, & Saleem, 2011). They, too, felt very bad in response to violations of morality-based honor.

In fact, this type of honor is so important that we educate our children to care about honesty from a very young age. A cross-cultural study in Spain and the Netherlands asked hundreds of children (7- and 12-year-olds), adolescents (17-year-olds) and adults (23-year-olds) to describe the meaning of honor (Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fischer, 2002b). Across cultural groups and sexes, integrity was referred to as one of the most important bases of honor. Even the 7-year-olds mentioned it. Indeed, they told their interviewers that honor is about keeping your word and telling the truth.

Family-based honor

Family honor shows the greatest cross-cultural variation. This type of honor is based on the reputation of a family as a collective. The family’s collective reputation is, in turn, dependent on each individual family member’s behavior. A family member can either enhance the family’s honor, or bring dishonor to the family (see e.g., Abu-Lughod, 1999; Gilmore, 1987; Peristiany, 1965; Pitt-Rivers, 1965; Uskul, Cross, Sunbay, Gercek-Swing, & Ataca, in press; Wikan, 1984). The items of the honor scale that measure family honor reflect this interdependence between individual and family reputation; for example, “How bad about yourself would you feel if your family had a bad reputation?” or ““How bad about yourself would you feel if you did something to damage your family’s reputation?” Several studies have shown that family honor is especially important in Mediterranean and Middle-Eastern cultures.

In the same study reported above (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002a), Spanish adults scored significantly higher on the family honor items of the honor scale than their Dutch counterparts. Thus, threats to family reputation damaged the self-esteem of the Spaniards (i.e., they felt worse about themselves) more than the self-esteem of the Dutch. These results have been replicated in a variety of different studies. For example, a study on honor narratives asked Spanish and Dutch children, adolescents, and adults to write narratives about the situations that lead to the loss of honor (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002b). The Spanish participants more often reported not living up to their family’s expectations as a source of dishonor (see also Rodriguez Mosquera, 2011). This cross-cultural variation in family honor has important implications for emotional experience, as those who value family honor respond strongly to threats as well as affirmations of their family’s reputation. We return to this point below in the section on honor and emotion.

Gender ideologies and honor

Men are expected to project masculine honor, which is based on being tough, strong, and being the provider and protector of the family. Feminine honor, which is based on modesty and (sexual) restraint, is expected of women (e.g., Brandes, 1980; Gilmore, 1987; Peristiany, 1965; Pitt-Rivers, 1965). Individuals vary in how much they value masculine and feminine honor. Interestingly, cross-cultural studies have shown that a person’s biological sex is often a stronger predictor than cultural background of the importance of masculine and feminine honor.

For example, Dutch and Spanish males care equally about masculine honor. And, Spanish and Dutch females care equally about feminine honor (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002a). These results are based on scores on the masculine and feminine honor items of the honor scale. The items “To what extent would you feel bad about yourself if you were known as someone who lacks authority over your family?” and “To what extent would you feel bad about yourself if you got a new boyfriend/girlfriend often?" are examples of items that measure masculine and feminine honor, respectively.

A recent study on gender and honor replicates these previous findings with a different methodology (Rodriguez Mosquera, 2011). Spanish and Dutch adults were asked to rate the desirability of masculine honor (e.g., toughness, assertiveness) and feminine honor (e.g., modesty, sexual restraint) attributes for women, as well as for men, in their cultures. Attitudes toward sex-roles (behaviors and activities we expect of men and women) were also measured. Spanish and Dutch participants rated masculine honor attributes (e.g., toughness) as more desirable for men, and feminine honor attributes (e.g., modesty) as more desirable for women. Interestingly, no sex differences emerged in these desirability ratings, indicating that males and females of both cultural groups associated masculine honor with men and feminine honor with women. Moreover, sex--not country of origin--was the most important predictor of attitudes toward sex-roles: men (both Spanish and Dutch) endorsed less egalitarian attitudes toward sex-roles than did women. Thus, the male participants agreed more than did the female participants with statements like “Important jobs in business and industry should be filled by men,” “In general, the father should have more authority than the mother in bringing up children,” or “Men should take initiative in sexuality.”

Honor and Emotion

Research on honor and emotion to date has focused mainly on negative emotional responses to insults. Insults are especially interesting social situations to study the emotional consequences of honor threats. Insults communicate that another person does not value or respect us. Since honor is based on the maintenance of a good social image, insults become core emotional events for those who value honor (Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fischer, 2004). Core emotional events are situations that threaten or advance important values of an individual.

Within the general focus on insults and negative emotions, some studies have exclusively studied men and their angry or aggressive responses to masculine honor threats. For example, Cohen and collaborators have shown that White, non-Hispanic men from the Southern United States’ honor culture respond with more aggression to threats to their reputation than do their Northern counterparts (see e.g., Cohen & Nisbett, 1994; Cohen, Nisbett, Bowdle, & Schwarz, 1996; Vandello, Cohen, & Ranson, 2008). Furthermore, Ijzerman and colleagues have shown that Dutch males who value honor highly respond with more anger and less joy to insults compared to Dutch males who value honor less (IJzerman, van Dijk, & Galluci, 2007). In this section, we present research that has adopted a different focus. In particular, we discuss findings from studies that have examined culture and sex-differences in anger, as well as shame, in response to insults. Shame is important to honor because this emotion can be a painful reminder of our image in the eyes of others (Cooley, 1902).

Anger and shame in response to masculine and feminine honor threats

As discussed previously, biological sex seems to be a better predictor of the importance of masculine and feminine honor than cultural background. Biological sex is also a better predictor of emotional responses to threats to masculine and feminine honor. Spanish and Dutch male and female participants were presented with real-life stories that threatened core values of the masculine or the feminine honor code (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002a). The threat to masculine honor story read as follows: “‘You have a partner and you are with this person in a café. Another person you do not know begins to annoy your partner. Your partner reacts quickly and before you can do anything the other person leaves. Others say to you: ‘‘You are not even capable of protecting your own partner.’’ This story described a person who is not tough and strong enough to protect a romantic partner. The feminine honor story, by contrast, threatened the feminine honor core value of sexual modesty by describing a person who is known as having different sexual partners. Participants were asked how they felt in response to the insult embedded in the stories (i.e., ‘others say to you…’).

The male participants (both Spanish and Dutch) felt angrier and more ashamed in response to the masculine honor story than the female participants did. The reverse pattern emerged for the threat to feminine honor story; female participants (both Spanish and Dutch) felt more angry and ashamed in response to this story than did male participants. It is interesting that anger and shame were strongly felt by both male and female participants. Thus, sex differences did not emerge in the intensity of anger and shame experienced among participants, but in the social situations in which these emotions were felt.

Those who value family honor respond more negatively when their families' reputations are threatened. In the same cross-cultural study mentioned above on real-life insult stories (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002a), the Spanish participants (both males and females) reported more intense shame than the Dutch participants in response to a story on family dishonor. The story described a person who was seen by their community as a disgrace to their family: “You feel rejected by your own family. One of your uncles often makes negative comments about you, such as: ‘’You bring shame on the family.’ Others say to you: ‘‘Even your own family is ashamed of you,’’ This cultural difference was explained by the Spanish participants’ greater concern for the protection of family honor.

Similar findings emerged from a cross-cultural study between Pakistani and European-Americans (Rodriguez Mosquera, Tan, & Saleem, 2011). Participants were asked to write narratives about a real incident in which another person devalued their family. Verbal insults were the most commonly type of devaluation reported by all participants. However, an interesting cultural difference emerged in the intensity of emotional responses. The Pakistani participants felt more angry and ashamed in response to verbal insults toward their family than did the European-Americans. Moreover, the Pakistani participants appraised insults to their families as a greater threat to their own and their family’s honor. In other words, those who evaluated an insult as a threat to honor (the Pakistani participants) also experienced more intense negative emotions.

Of course, those who care about family do not only respond to threats, but also to affirmations to their family’s reputation. Recently, the cultural bases of happiness for Indian, English, and European-American adults were compared (Rodriguez Mosquera & Imada, 2011). The Indian participants valued family honor more than did the English and European-Americans. We found cross-cultural differences and similarities in predictors of happiness. Personal achievement was a significant predictor of happiness for all participants. However, the good reputation of one’s family only predicted the happiness of those participants who valued family honor the most (Indian participants). The more the families of these participants’ were respected and valued in their communities, the greater their happiness. Taken together, the findings of these studies reveal the profound influence of family honor on emotional experiences, an influence that extends to both positive and negative emotions.

Finally, what do people do when they feel anger and shame about an insult?

The research we have discussed so far describes emotional experiences, but not emotional expressions. We have shown that both anger and shame are relevant emotional responses to insults. But what do people do when they feel angry and ashamed about an insult? Are there cultural or sex-differences in these emotional expressions? These questions are important because shame is an especially positive emotion for those who value honor.

As explained in the introduction, the expression of shame is an expression of apology. We express our vulnerability to others as we disclose our failures and mistakes. Thus, when we express shame, we are telling others that we care about how they view us. Because honor is dependent on a good social image, shame is an especially positive emotion for those who value honor (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2000, 2004). It is therefore reasonable to expect that those who value honor highly will do something different when feeling shame about an insult compared to those who value honor less. This question was explored in a comparative study across three different ethnic groups: (white) Dutch, Moroccan-Dutch, and Turkish-Dutch (Rodriguez Mosquera, Fischer, Manstead, & Zaalberg, 2008). In this study, the Moroccan-Dutch and Turkish-Dutch were considered as one group. Although Moroccan- and Turkish-Dutch ethnic groups represent different cultural communities, their responses to insults were virtually identical. Moreover, they valued honor highly and to a similar degree, whereas the Dutch valued honor less.

The participants were asked to report a recent insult. There were no cultural differences in the types of insults reported by the participants. For example, all participants reported insults to their competence (e.g., a derogatory joke about the participant’s intelligence) or insults to their place in relationships (e.g., a friend not wanting to spend time with the participant). Participants felt both anger and shame in response to the insult. This finding emphasizes the notion that emotional responses to insults are mixed and that both anger and shame are relevant to situations in which others devalue us. Interestingly, there were no cultural differences in what the participants did when they felt anger about the insult. All participants criticized, or insulted, the person who insulted them. However, the Moroccan/Turkish-Dutch expressed their shame over the insult differently than did the Dutch participants. In fact, they engaged in opposite behaviors.

The Dutch withdrew from the situation, whereas the Moroccan/Turkish-Dutch expressed verbal disapproval toward the person who insulted them. Moreover, the Moroccan/Turkish-Dutch expressed disapproval of the insulter’s behavior in attempts to protect their reputations. Because social image is very important for those who value honor, shame in response to an insult leads them to do more to challenge the insulter, thereby seeking to improve their honor.

Conclusions

Honor is a complex system of values, norms, and practices. From this complexity, four types of honor emerge: morality-based, family-based, feminine, and masculine honor. We presented research on the nature of these four types of honor in Mediterranean, Northern European, North American, and Middle-Eastern cultures. These studies reveal that each type of honor has profound influences on both negative (anger and shame) and positive (pride and happiness) emotions.

We showed that morality-based honor is centered on honesty and trust, and is the most universal type of honor. Across cultures, individuals feel bad about themselves if they are dishonest and untrustworthy. Family-based honor is based on the reputation of the family as a collective. It is the type of honor that varies most across cultures. For example, those who highly value family honor feel greater happiness about their family’s good reputation. Masculine and feminine honor are gender-specific honor codes. As such, they are most influenced by one’s biological sex (male or female), rather than by one’s cultural background (e.g., Dutch or Spanish). For this reason, male and females from different cultures respond with equally intense anger, or shame, to violations of the masculine (i.e., lack of toughness) or the feminine (i.e., lack of sexual shame) honor codes. The extent of honor’s influences on our emotions testifies to its centrality in our lives and our relationships. We need no reminder of what Publilius Syrus wrote in 100 BC: What is left when honor is lost?

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