The study, which explored drinking and health outcomes in newly sober recovering alcoholics, is the first to show that physical manifestations of shame - from slumped shoulders to narrow chests - can directly predict a relapse in people who struggle with substances."Our study finds that how much shame people display can strongly predict not only whether they will go on to relapse, but how bad that relapse will be - that is, how many drinks they will consume," says UBC Psychology Prof. Jessica Tracy, who conducted the study with graduate student Daniel Randles.