Shame-attacking exercises are designed to:

• A. Encourage the client to act fearlessly in situations that trigger shame
• B. Help clients ignore all social impressions
• C. Encourage the individual to do things without feeling foolish and avoid depending on others' impressions
• D. Teach clients to avoid social interactions

Answer: (C)

Shame-attacking exercises aim to reduce the grip of feared social judgments by having a person perform actions in situations that would normally trigger embarrassment. The point isn’t to become fearless, but to test and weaken the belief that being seen as foolish or others’ opinions control self-worth. By acting despite the fear of ridicule, clients discover that negative outcomes are not as awful as imagined and that they can behave effectively even under scrutiny. This reduces reliance on others’ impressions and builds confidence to engage in situations they previously avoided.

That’s why the best choice is to encourage doing things without feeling foolish and without depending on others’ impressions. These exercises promote tolerance of shame and a shift toward self-directed action rather than chasing expert or external validation.

They aren’t about ignoring social impressions altogether, avoiding social interactions, or eliminating the presence of social judgment; they’re about acting despite it and altering the impact those impressions have on behavior.