Giving and accepting criticism gracefully can be a tricky business. Many a friendship or family relationship has foundered on the shoals of major, minor, or even anticipated criticism. Performance evaluations at school or work are minefields of misunderstood criticism. What makes criticism so darned difficult? And how can we make it easier? Some of the answers may lie in a better understanding of the relationship between criticism and the basic emotion we call shame. It may seem both obvious and [...]
