Naomi Campbell broke down in tears as she blamed her notorious temper on “abandonment issues.”

The supermodel was questioned by Oprah Winfrey, who confronted her frankly about her temper - which has seen her previously lash out at her own staff, camera crews, police officers and airline workers. Naomi blamed her furious outbursts on her mother, who left her at home while she pursued a career as a ballet dancer.

When asked by Oprah if she was “just a petulant diva,” she replied, “It comes from a deeper place than that with me. It comes from another type of emotional disorder because it’s not just, if I don’t get what I want I throw a fit. It comes from, I think, an abandonment issue and it comes from also trying to just build up a family around me that’s not my immediate family and if I feel a mistrust, then, all my cards go down. It’s not a right thing to do. I just see red.”

Naomi, who is 40 this month, admitted she is ashamed of her fits of rage and is remorseful every time her temper gets the better of her. She added: “I take responsibility for the things that I have done and I do feel a great sense of shame. I am ashamed of everything I’ve ever done. I don’t have an excuse for my behavior.”

In 2000, Naomi pleaded guilty to assaulting her personal assistant and in 2003 she was sued by another assistant who claimed she had thrown her telephone at her. Just a year later, the 39-year-old model was accused of slapping her maid around the face and in 2005 another personal assistant accused Naomi of hitting her over the head with her BlackBerry handset. In 2006, the catwalk beauty was arrested after she threw a jewel-encrusted mobile phone at her housekeeper. She was arrested again in April 2008 at London’s Heathrow airport on suspicion of assaulting a police officer after one of her suitcases went missing.