LAUSR

Shame both stymies and motivates learning; it prevents adults from participating in educational programs yet, with accompanied self-examination, it can be the catalyst for transformation. While fundamental for understanding adult learning, shame is (shamefully) inadequately theorized in the field of adult education: We don’t talk enough about shame. The purpose of this article is to spark a conversation about shame in adult learning and education and to inspire the transformative learning community to undertake further empirical and theoretical analyses of shame in adult learning. As Dirkx implored us over a decade ago, we need to stop shying away from emotions in adult learning and to begin to courageously engage that which lies in the unconscious but which drives our everyday actions and interactions. Shame is at the core of who we are—and who we can become—as adult learners and educators.