: the act or activity of subjecting someone to shame, disgrace, humiliation, or disrepute especially by public exposure or criticism Other times they would take more aggressive measures, tracking down and exposing the identities of supposed wrongdoers who the group felt had not been brought to justice.

What is being shamed?

Shaming is an attempt to make another person feel ashamed. Shaming targets who a person is, not what they do. Telling a child they are bad is an act of shaming. Shaming also sometimes appeals to religious or social norms. Publicly airing a person's misdeeds is usually an attempt to shame them.

What is the purpose of shaming?

According to Fessler (2004), the function of shame is to regulate social systems and hierarchies. In fact, he speculates that shame is responsible for the aversive effects of social rejection and may ultimately be responsible for encouraging the maintenance of social norms.