ArticleLiterature Review

Self-Compassion: Theory, Method, Research, and Intervention

January 2023
Annual Review of Psychology 74(1)

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CC BY 4.0

Authors:

University of Texas at Austin

Self-compassion refers to being supportive toward oneself when experiencing suffering or pain—be it caused by personal mistakes and inadequacies or external life challenges. This review presents my theoretical model of self-compassion as comprised of six different elements: increased self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness as well as reduced self-judgment, isolation, and overidentification. It discusses the methodology of self-compassion research and reviews the increasingly large number of empirical studies that indicate self-compassion is a productive way of approaching distressing thoughts and emotions that engenders mental and physical well-being. It also reviews research that dispels common myths about self-compassion (e.g., that it is weak, selfish, self-indulgent or undermines motivation). Interventions designed to increase self-compassion, such as compassion-focused therapy and mindful self-compassion, are discussed. Finally, the review considers problematic issues in the field, such as the differential effects fallacy, and considers limitations and future research directions in the field of self-compassion research. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Psychology, Volume 74 is January 2023. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Problematic social media use, self-compassion, and social self-efficacy among Chinese college students

Article

May 2025

Online Pre‐Nursing Students' Experiences With Practicing Self‐Compassion Skills: A Thematic Analysis

Article

Full-text available

May 2025
J ADV NURS

Aim To introduce self‐compassion knowledge and skills to pre‐nursing students using course‐based content and qualitatively analyse their experiences via a reflective writing assignment. Design A qualitative descriptive research design was used. Methods All pre‐nursing students enrolled in a required Introduction to Nursing course were introduced to self‐compassion information and invited to practice one self‐compassion skill each week for 2 weeks. Students could choose from (1) self‐compassion break, (2) supportive touch or (3) critical self‐talk skills and completed two reflection assignments on their experience. Thematic analysis was used to analyse participants' responses. Results Participants (n = 63) were female (85.7%), White (38.1%), with an average age of 34.2 years. Exposure to self‐compassion content was novel for many and heightened their awareness of how they treat themselves. In the self‐compassion break, students learned to recognise and reframe suffering and noticed a calming effect resulting from the experience. Participants who tried supportive touch noted conflicting experiences of discovering the power of touch or being out of their comfort zone. With the critical self‐talk exercise, participants discovered a new awareness of critical self‐talk and the benefits and challenges related to trying to turn critical self‐talk around. Conclusion Self‐compassion knowledge and skills can offer pre‐nursing students support with internal psychological processes including self‐regulation, stress management and psychosocial health. Nurse educators should consider incorporating self‐compassion concepts with students to promote academic persistence. Implications for the Profession Assisting nursing students with skills to manage psychosocial health supports academic persistence and success, which is needed to mitigate the ongoing nursing shortage. Impact Learning about self‐compassion was a new experience for many participants. In‐the‐moment benefits to physical and mental well‐being were often reported. A minority expressed scepticism regarding the utility of supportive touch or changing critical self‐talk. Pre‐nursing students can utilize self‐compassion skills to support self‐regulation and student success. Reporting Method This study was guided by the Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research (SRQR) guidelines. Patient or Public Contribution No patient or public contribution.

The revival of happiness through self-compassion based on mindfulness and wisdom

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Pattarapong Thammarongpreechachai

Everything happens for a reason, which is determined by its causes and consequences. People who do not understand reality and refuse to accept the truth are likely to suffer immediately. Understanding and accepting the truth would assist people to remain calm when confronted with a life-changing situation. Living a happy life or a life free of suffering requires adequate mindfulness and wisdom: mindfulness is the ability to be aware of both reality and wisdom, and wisdom is the key to living responsibly. The most fundamental aspect of happiness revival is self-compassion. It aims to promote cognitive accuracy, support individual comprehension, and develop the ability to embrace the truth through two components: self-kindness (self-perception) and common humanity (perception of the world and life). The process of happiness revival based on mindfulness and wisdom principles is as follows: 1) Being aware of thoughts is the cause of suffering. 2) Identifying types of negative thoughts. 3) Enhancing proper thinking. 4) Having more proper thinking than suffering can help reduce negative emotions and transform them into positive ones.

Emotion Dysregulation, Mindfulness, Self-Compassion, and Values Engagement in US Post-9/11 Veterans

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
Mindfulness

Objectives Emotion dysregulation is a crucial transdiagnostic treatment target. Evidence-based psychoeducational interventions teach skills including mindfulness, self-compassion, and values engagement to improve emotion regulation. Method We analyzed a sample of 351 US post-9/11 veterans to examine the relationships between these skills and emotion dysregulation over time. We explored how mindfulness, self-compassion, and values engagement related to emotion dysregulation over 2 years in concurrent and lagged linear mixed models. Results Concurrent analyses indicated that within-person and between-person effects of mindfulness (within: standardized point estimate [Mdn] = − 0.13, between: Mdn = − 0.30), self-compassion (within: Mdn = − 0.10, between: Mdn = − 0.33), and values engagement (within: Mdn = − 0.03) were significantly negatively associated with emotion dysregulation when examined in separate models. When skills were examined simultaneously, within-person effects of mindfulness (Mdn = − 0.10) and self-compassion (Mdn = − 0.07) and the between-person effect of self-compassion (Mdn = − 0.30) were significantly negatively associated with emotion dysregulation. In lagged analyses, between-person effects of mindfulness (Mdn = − 0.22) and self-compassion (Mdn = − 0.23) significantly negatively predicted emotion dysregulation when examined in separate models. There was no evidence of significant effects of skills on emotion dysregulation when examined in a lagged analysis with other skills. There was no evidence for between-person effects of values engagement on emotion dysregulation. Conclusions Mindfulness and self-compassion are associated with better emotion regulation in veterans. As such, individual differences in state or trait-level standings of these skills could be assessed in veterans for tailoring treatment planning to enhance emotion regulation. Preregistration This study is not preregistered.

The construct and integration of compassion in social work: Perspectives from Atlantic Canada

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
BRIT J SOC WORK

Social work is a profession predicated on helping others in a manner that supports all persons' inherent dignity, worth, and self-determination while simultaneously endeavouring to achieve social transformation towards social justice and liberatory aims. This study explored the role of compassion in social work through qualitative interviews conducted with thirteen registered social workers engaged in direct-practice social work in Atlantic Canada. Findings point to the importance of considering the role of compassion in multi-level social work practice in diverse contexts. Recommendations regarding incorporating compassion into social work curriculum, child resilience and protective practices, and exploring how compassion can be meaningfully integrated into community and policy contexts are presented.

Self-Compassion and Smartphone Addiction Tendency Among College Students: The Chain-Mediating Effect of Self-Concept Clarity and Experiential Avoidance

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Smartphone addiction has emerged as a pressing public health issue in recent years, which negatively impacts university students’ academic performance, physical and mental health, and social functioning. Therefore, it is crucial to explore the significant factors related to smartphone addiction. While previous research has suggested a potential link between self-compassion and problematic internet or smartphone use, studies specifically examining the relationship between self-compassion and smartphone addiction tendency remain limited. From a positive psychology perspective, this study aims to explore the relationship between self-compassion and smartphone addiction tendency, as well as its internal mechanism. A total of 641 Chinese college students were recruited to complete online questionnaires assessing their self-compassion, self-concept clarity, experiential avoidance, and smartphone addiction tendency. The results show that self-compassion not only directly and negatively predicts smartphone addiction tendency, but also indirectly predicts it through the independent mediating effects of self-concept clarity and experiential avoidance. Additionally, there is a chain-mediating effect of self-concept clarity and experiential avoidance. This study provides a new perspective for the prevention and intervention of smartphone addiction tendency among college students.

State Self-Compassion Dynamics: Partial Evidence for the Bipolar Continuum Hypothesis

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
Mindfulness

Objectives The Bipolar Continuum Hypothesis suggests that compassionate self-responding (CS) and uncompassionate self-responding (UCS) operate as opposing ends of a dynamic continuum. While this aligns with the view of self-compassion as a synergistic system, some researchers argue CS and UCS may function independently, raising questions about their relationship. This study examined real-time fluctuations in CS and UCS in response to contextual factors, addressing these theoretical and methodological complexities. Methods Across two longitudinal field studies (Study 1, n = 326; Study 2, n = 168), 494 participants provided weekly Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) data over 3 months. We assessed how immediate emotional states, decentering (a mindfulness-related skill), and event unpleasantness influenced CS and UCS in daily life. Results Partial support was found for the Bipolar Continuum Hypothesis, with CS and UCS generally showing inverse fluctuations in response to negative affect and decentering. Negative affect was the strongest predictor, linked to higher UCS and lower CS. Decentering showed a stronger association with reducing UCS than increasing CS, suggesting an asymmetry in their interaction. An idionomic analysis revealed individual variability, with a subset of participants displaying no clear inverse relationship, or even a positive association, between CS and UCS. Event unpleasantness had a minor impact. Conclusions These findings partially support the Bipolar Continuum Hypothesis, particularly regarding responses to emotional states, while also highlighting individual differences. Future research could explore the potential benefits of refining interventions and tailoring approaches to account for individual variations in CS and UCS dynamics. Preregistration This study is not preregistered.

Self-Compassion and Positive Solitude Experiences Enhance Well-being for Informal Caregivers of Older Adults, and Middle and Older Adults

Thesis

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Sep 2024

Farah Wiita

Self-compassion has been found useful in supporting resilience and well-being when tested in general populations and can be especially useful during periods that are prone to rumination and isolation. Little is known about the nature and importance of self-compassion in informal caregivers of older adults. Yet informal caregivers often experience such psychological burdens when providing care for their loved one. Many are themselves older adults, and their time away from others’ expectations – in solitude – is a potential resource for self-care. The work developed within this thesis aimed to build an understanding of self-compassion as a resource for caregivers (the first two empirical papers, Chapters 2 and 3), and during solitude moments in middle and older adults (the final empirical chapter, Chapter 4). Chapter 2 explores the definition and meaning of self-compassion for caregivers through interviews, providing a foundation for later research in this population. For these caregivers, the concept of self-compassion involved identifying one’s own needs and prioritising them. Self-compassion was accessed through a mindset in which challenges were viewed with clarity and acceptance, and boundaries were maintained through protecting a separate identity. Feeling connected with other people was important to protect from ‘aloneness’. However, barriers to self-compassion were experienced when compromises were necessary to fulfil recipients’ needs and where demands on caregivers’ resources were particularly high. This research highlighted that ‘self-care’ and ‘self-kindness’ were central to self-compassion. In Chapter 3, the utility of self-compassionate writing for caregivers was tested, with caregivers writing about difficult caregiving experiences with self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness (the three self-compassion components). Studies 2 and 3 showed self-kindness was particularly important for well-being in caregivers, and in Study 4 common humanity and self-kindness were most strongly linked with beneficial mood outcomes (higher serenity, less guilt, and less sadness). Findings from this research, and from the literature, showed that caregivers of older adults were often middle and older adults themselves, caring for a spouse or an older parent. It was further highlighted that their solitude was a vulnerable time for rumination and isolation when individuals are in difficult circumstances, but also potentially as a time for great self-care with the right mindset. The final empirical chapter spanning Studies 5 and 6 highlighted that, of three self-compassion constructs (self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness), self-kindness was a particularly robust correlate of better mood (higher serenity; less sadness; Study 5). Findings from research with a young adult sample (Study 5) helped shape a targeted intervention for older adults in Study 6. Middle and older adult participants therefore engaged in planned solitude experiences targeted towards self-kindness, specifically (Study 6). Those who completed self-kindness activities in planned solitude experienced greater serenity and vitality. In all, self-kindness appeared to be an important facilitator for increasing self-compassion in young, middle, and older adults, and was also important for caregiving populations.

Mindful and Well: The Effects of a Socioemotional Competence Training (SECT) in a Randomized Controlled Trial

Article

Full-text available

May 2025

Many psychological interventions are designed to address specific characteristics of socioemotional functioning. This randomized controlled trial innovatively examined to what extent effects of such an intervention generalize to broader domains. The new socioemotional competence training (SECT), designed to improve social and emotional functioning and well-being in healthy adults, consists of eight weekly 2-hr sessions and was conducted in three cohorts. We collected data on both specific outcomes that were directly targeted during the training (i.e., mindfulness, perceived stress) and broader psychological indicators of emotional and social functioning (e.g., self-compassion, empathy, perspective taking, well-being) before, during, and after the training, with follow-ups after 3 and 12 months. Participants were 166 young (19–39 years, M = 28.16, SD = 4.7) and older (50–78 years, M = 63.55, SD = 7.2) healthy German adults (75.2% female). Of these, 73 and 54 participants were randomly allocated to the socioemotional competence training or to a waitlist control group, respectively. Thirty-nine participants were allocated to the last training cohort. Results of the mixed effects models showed significant Group-by-Time effects on mindfulness (b = 0.28, 95% CI [0.16, 0.40]), perceived stress (b = −0.36, 95% CI [−0.56, −0.16]), and well-being (b = 0.43, 95% CI [0.09, 0.78]), but no meaningful effects on the other broader outcomes. Training effects were stable across 3- to 12-months follow-up. The socioemotional competence training yielded specific improvements in characteristics that were explicitly and consistently addressed throughout the training. This underscores the importance of tailored interventions in promoting specific aspects of socioemotional well-being.

The Influence of Self-Compassion and Psychological Well-Being in Quarter-Life Crisis Among Students

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Full-text available

May 2025

The phenomenon of the quarter-life crisis frequently occurs among individuals aged 20 to 30 years, a period known as emerging adulthood. This prolonged crisis phase is primarily attributed to low levels of well-being, which are influenced by self-compassion—a factor with both preventive and promotive potential. This study aims to examine how self-compassion affects the psychological well-being of emerging adults experiencing a quarter-life crisis in Surabaya. Employing a quantitative research approach, the study utilizes a closed-ended questionnaire for data collection. The findings confirm that self-compassion has a positive impact on psychological well-being and serves as a protective factor in coping with the quarter-life crisis. By recognizing difficulties as a natural part of life, students with higher self-compassion are better able to accept themselves, regulate their emotions effectively, and develop more stable psychological well-being.

Emotionsregulation bei Jugendlichen mit sozialer Angststörung, Depression, selbstverletzenden Verhaltensweisen und suizidalem VerhaltenEmotion regulation in adolescents with social anxiety disorder, depression, self-injurious behavior, and suicidal behavior: Implikationen für Diagnostik und TherapieImplications for diagnosis and therapy

Article

May 2025

During adolescence, young people have to cope with various developmental tasks; this can be emotionally challenging. Failure to master these developmental tasks can be associated with (psychosocial) impairments such as social anxiety disorder (SAD) and depressive disorder (DD). Maladaptive emotion regulation strategies are frequently seen in mental illnesses. In adolescence, DD often occurs comorbidly following untreated SAD. It is therefore not surprising that adolescents with SAD and DD often display maladaptive emotion regulation strategies in the form of nonsuicidal self-injury behavior (NSSB) and suicidal behavior (SB). This article illustrates these relationships by analyzing two child and adolescent psychiatric cohorts. A transdiagnostic explanatory model with difficulties in emotion regulation as a common element highlights the need for improved diagnostics and more specific therapy for affected adolescents in the form of teaching adaptive emotion regulation strategies, such as those used in dialectical behavior therapy for adolescents (DBT-A).

Self-compassion, automatic thoughts, and mental pain in depression: Mediating effects and clinical implications

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

BACKGROUND Depression is a leading global health concern with high suicide rates and recurrence. Cognitive models suggest that mental pain and automatic thoughts are central to depression's impact. The hypothesis is that self-compassion will be negatively associated with mental pain, mediated by automatic thoughts. AIM To determine the mediating role of automatic thoughts in the relationship between self-compassion and mental pain in individuals with depression. METHODS This cross-sectional study included 389 inpatients with depression from Tianjin Anding Hospital. Participants completed the Self-Compassion Scale-Chinese Version (SCS-C), Automatic Thought Questionnaire (ATQ), and Orbach & Mikulincer Mental Pain Scale-Chinese Version (OMMP). Data were analyzed using Pearson correlations, multiple linear regressions, and mediation analysis. RESULTS The SCS-C total score was 68.95 ± 14.89, ATQ was 87.02 ± 28.91, and OMMP was 129.01 ± 36.74. Correlation analysis showed mental pain was positively associated with automatic thoughts (r = 0.802, P < 0.001) and negatively with self-compassion (r = -0.636, P < 0.001). Regression analysis indicated automatic thoughts (β = 0.623, P < 0.001) and self-compassion (β = -0.301, P < 0.001) significantly predicted mental pain. Mediation analysis confirmed automatic thoughts partially mediated the relationship between self-compassion and mental pain (ab = -0.269, 95%CI: -0.363 to -0.212). CONCLUSION Self-compassion is inversely related to mental pain in depression, with automatic thoughts playing a mediating role. These findings suggest potential therapeutic targets for alleviating mental pain in depressed patients.

Practice what you profess: Faculty mental health, compassion fatigue, and cultivating a resilience practice

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2023

Millie Cordaro

American Psychology Association Psychology Teacher Network https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/psychology-teacher-network/introductory-psychology/resillience-in-practice

Longitudinal Impact of Peer Support on Self-Compassion, Self-Stigma, and Mental Health Among Individuals with Mental Disorders

Article

Full-text available

May 2025
Mindfulness

Objectives The present study examined a conceptual model regarding the longitudinal impact of peer support on the mental health of individuals with mental disorders. Specifically, it tested whether greater peer support would be longitudinally associated with higher levels of self-compassion and lower levels of self-stigma, leading to reduced psychological distress, more positive perceptions of recovery, and greater life satisfaction. Method Participants were 235 individuals with mental disorders recruited from four non-governmental organizations providing mental health services in Hong Kong. They completed questionnaire measures of peer support at baseline (Time 1; T1) and measures of self-compassion, self-stigma, psychological distress, perceptions of recovery, and life satisfaction 1 year later (Time 2; T2). The interrelations of these variables were investigated using path analyses and bootstrap analyses. Results Path analyses revealed that greater peer support at T1 was associated with higher levels of self-compassion and lower levels of self-stigma, which, in turn, were linked to reduced psychological distress, more positive perceptions of recovery, and greater life satisfaction at T2. Bootstrap analyses further showed that peer support had indirect effects on psychological distress, perceptions of recovery, and life satisfaction through self-compassion and self-stigma. Conclusions This study demonstrates the beneficial effects of peer support in enhancing self-compassion, reducing self-stigma, and promoting mental health outcomes among individuals with mental disorders. Given the psychological benefits of peer support, mental health service providers should make concerted efforts to promote peer support for their service users. Preregistration This study is not preregistered.

Brief Multimodal Intervention to Address Students’ Bedtime Procrastination and Sleep Through Self-Compassion and Sleep Hygiene During Stressful Times

Article

May 2025

Üniversite Öğrencilerinin Çocukluk Çağı Travmaları ve Psikolojik Kırılganlıkları ile Öz Şefkat Düzeyleri Arasındaki İlişkinin İncelenmesi

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Bu çalışmanın amacı, üniversite öğrencilerinin çocukluk çağı travmaları, psikolojik kırılganlıkları ve öz şefkat seviyeleri arasındaki ilişkiyi incelemektir. Araştırmada, çocukluk travmaları, psikolojik kırılganlık ve öz şefkat arasındaki ilişkileri incelerken öz şefkatin, çocukluk travmaları ile psikolojik kırılganlık arasındaki ilişki üzerindeki aracılık rolü de değerlendirilmiştir. İlişkisel tarama modeline dayanan bu çalışmaya, Türkiye'nin farklı illerinde ikamet eden 470 üniversite öğrencisi katılmıştır. Veriler, kolayda örnekleme yöntemi kullanılarak çevrimiçi anketler yoluyla toplanmıştır. Veri toplama sürecinde Kişisel Bilgi Formu, Çocukluk Çağı Travmaları Ölçeği (ÇÇTÖ), Öz Duyarlılık Ölçeği (ÖDÖ) ve Psikolojik Kırılganlık Ölçeği (PKÖ) gibi araçlar kullanılmıştır. Verilerin analizi için SPSS 26.0 ve Amos 24 yazılımları tercih edilmiştir. İki kategorili değişkenler ile ölçek puanlarının karşılaştırılması amacıyla Independent Sample T testi veya Mann Whitney U testi kullanılmıştır. Üç veya daha fazla kategorili değişkenler için ise One Way ANOVA veya Kruskal Wallis H testi uygulanmıştır. Değişkenler arasındaki ilişkiyi incelemek için Pearson Korelasyon Analizi kullanılmıştır. Aracılık etkisi ise AMOS 24 programında, Bootsrap tekniğini içeren yol analizi yöntemiyle test edilmiştir. Sonuçlar, çocukluk çağı travmaları ve psikolojik kırılganlık ile öz şefkat seviyeleri arasında anlamlı bir ilişki olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Ayrıca, öz şefkatin, çocukluk travmaları ve psikolojik kırılganlık arasındaki ilişkide aracılık rolü oynadığı saptanmıştır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Çocukluk çağı travmaları, psikolojik kırılganlık, öz şefkat, yapısal eşitlik modeli

Trait Mindfulness and the Experience of Stuttering

Article

Full-text available

May 2025
AM J SPEECH-LANG PAT

Purpose There is minimal literature describing trait mindfulness in people who stutter and how aspects of trait mindfulness might relate to treatment outcomes and the experience of stuttering. The primary aim of this study was to determine whether there are differences in trait mindfulness in people who stutter compared to people who do not stutter to better inform the appropriateness of including mindfulness strategies in a comprehensive stuttering treatment plan. Method Seventeen adults who stutter and 17 adults who do not stutter completed the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire to measure trait mindfulness as well as either the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering or the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Speaking Ability to measure the impact of stuttering or speaking experiences on their lives. A subset of 16 adults who stutter completed a battery of assessments on personal characteristics associated with the experience of stuttering (experiential avoidance, repetitive negative thinking, and inattention characteristics). This allowed for comparisons of trait mindfulness between people who stutter and people who do not stutter as well as for analyses of the potential relationships between trait mindfulness and speaking experience within each population and of various personal characteristics in people who stutter. Results No significant differences in trait mindfulness were found between people who stutter and people who do not stutter. A strong negative correlation was found between the trait mindfulness facet of nonjudging of inner experiences and experiential avoidance. Conclusion Findings highlight the necessity of a comprehensive understanding of the specific characteristics of individual speakers when incorporating aspects of mindfulness into stuttering treatment.

Self-Compassion in the Moment: Dynamic Changes of Compassionate and Uncompassionate Self-Responding in Daily Life

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

One important debate about self-compassion is whether it should be conceptualized as one general construct or two separate constructs: compassionate self-responding (CS) and uncompassionate self-responding (UCS). However, our understanding of self-compassion has been restricted to examining it as a trait-like construct assessed at a single time point, thus limiting our understanding of potentially important fluctuations in compassion within-person and over time. Therefore, to move forward the debate, the present study used a novel method, Dynamic Structural Equation Modeling, to examine the within-person temporal dynamics between CS and UCS. Participants were 114 German adults who reported their momentary state of CS and UCS six times a day for 7 days using a smartphone. Both autoregressive effects (i.e., CS at previous moment predicts subsequent CS) and cross-lagged effects (i.e., CS at previous moment predicts subsequent UCS) were modeled. We found evidence for positive autoregressive effects of both constructs while no evidence for cross-lagged effects. We further found that these effects are not constant across individuals, as indicated by the significant random effects. Our results highlight the utility of separating self-compassion into CS and UCS at the within-person level in order to better inform the development of tailored interventions.

Analisis Pengaruh Kecerdasan Spiritual, Kecerdasan Emosional, dan Welas Diri terhadap Performa Akademik Siswa Sekolah Dasar

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Tingginya stres akademik serta menurunnya performa akademis siswa sekolah dasar menunjukkan perlunya elaborasi lebih lanjut terhadap faktor-faktor pembentuk keberhasilan akademik, khususnya aspek non-kognitif yang selama ini kurang mendapatkan perhatian. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis pengaruh spiritual quotient (SQ), emotional quotient (EQ), dan self-compassion (SC) terhadap academic performance (AP) siswa sekolah dasar. Hipotesis yang diuji adalah adanya pengaruh signifikan ketiga variabel prediktor terhadap AP. Studi ini menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif dengan desain non-eksperimental dengan partisipan berjumlah 51 siswa kelas 6 dari dua sekolah dasar di Indonesia yang dipilih melalui teknik accidental sampling. Data dikumpulkan menggunakan kuesioner adaptasi dari instrumen terstandar: SISRI-24 untuk SQ (α = 0.921), BEIS-10 untuk EQ (α = 0.922), dan SCS-SF untuk SC (α = 0.86). AP diukur menggunakan ACS (α = 0.74). Analisis regresi berganda menunjukkan bahwa ketiga variabel prediktor secara simultan signifikan (F = 6.580; p < 0.001) memengaruhi AP, ketiganya menjelaskan 25.1% variansi AP (Adjusted R² = 0.251). Secara parsial, hanya SQ yang berpengaruh signifikan terhadap AP (B = 0.551; p = 0.003), sedangkan EQ dan SC tidak signifikan (p > 0.05). Implikasi teoretis menunjukkan bahwa SQ merupakan prediktor kuat kinerja akademik siswa sekolah dasar. Temuan ini merekomendasikan penguatan pendidikan berbasis spiritual sebagai bagian dari pendekatan holistik dalam pengembangan akademik siswa.

Decoding vital variables in predicting different phases of suicide among young adults with childhood sexual abuse: a machine learning approach

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Young adults with childhood sexual abuse (CSA) are an especially vulnerable group to suicide. Suicide encompasses different phases, but for CSA survivors the salient factors precipitating suicide are rarely studied. In this study, from a progressive perspective of suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB), we aim to identify distinct risk factors for predicting different stages of STB, i.e., suicidal ideation (SI), suicide plan (SP), and suicide attempt (SA), among young adults with CSA experience. Based on mental health profiles of 4,070 young adult CSA survivors from a cross-sectional survey, we constructed five random forest classification models to respectively classify high suicidality, SI, SP, and SA. The common crucial factors for predicting SI, SP, and SA included NSSI and depression. The special important predictors for SI included OCD, anxiety, PTSD, and social rhythm. Co-occurrence of other types of childhood abuse and traumatic events was a special important predictor for SP among participants with SI. Self-compassion was the most crucial factor in classifying SA from those with SI. Social rhythm, co-occurrence of other types of childhood abuse, domestic violence, fear of happiness, and self-compassion made specific contribution to the prediction of SI, SP, and SA. However, the random forest model failed to accurately classify SA from those with SP, which was consistent with existing research. Our findings highlighted the importance of identifying suicidal characteristics for specified interventions at different stages of suicide for young people with CSA experiences.

How Can Gestalt-Integrated Group Help Strengthen Your Self-Compassion?

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Sümeyye Eliz Burhan

Self-compassion is the ability to direct kindness towards oneself. Gestalt therapy benefits from self-compassion so that clients reenact and confront their emotional problems more gently. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the Gestalt Integrated SelfCompassion Development Program among university students. This quasi-experimental study used a pre-test, post-test design with a control group. This study was conducted on 20 undergraduate students with different levels of self-compassion. The research population has been selected with a convenient sampling technique and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (n=10 in each group). The Gestalt Integrated Self-Compassion Development Program was applied to the experimental group in the context of 8-sessiongroup counseling, while the control group was not involved in any intervention. The obtained data were analyzed with the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks and Mann-Whitney U tests. The findings indicated that The Gestalt Integrated Self-Compassion Development Program is a helpful intervention to increase university students’ self-compassion. However, more extensive studies are required to be carried out with different groups.

Feeling small but still connected: examining complex effects of Awe on self-compassion

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
CURR PSYCHOL

Having a self-compassionate attitude is linked to positive psychological functioning, making it important to identify experiences that promote self-compassion. Several self-transcendent experiences and emotions (e.g., mindfulness), have been shown to predict self-compassion. As awe is considered a self-transcendent emotion, we examined awe as a potential elicitor of self-compassion. This investigation aligns with recent and rapidly growing interest in awe’s intrapersonal consequences. In the present work, we conducted three studies to investigate the relationship between dispositional (Study 1), and experimentally-induced (Study 2 and 3) awe and self-compassion. A correlational relationship between awe proneness and trait self-compassion was observed in Study 1 (N = 473), and awe proneness uniquely predicted self-compassion over and above pride, compassion, and amusement. However, Studies 2 (N = 483) and 3 (N = 377) did not find that reflecting on awe experiences had a causal impact on self-compassion. Instead, we observed opposing indirect effects via awe’s self-transcendent mechanisms–such that awe simultaneously boosted feelings of self-diminishment, which negatively predicted self-compassion (Studies 2 & 3), and boosted feelings of connectedness, which positively predicted self-compassion (Study 3). The indirect effect of awe on self-compassion via self-diminishment generalized to different ‘flavors’ of awe (positive and negative nature) and was distinct from a joy control condition (Study 2). This work highlights complexities surrounding the relationship between awe and self-compassion, which aligns with past work on intrapersonal consequences of awe (e.g., meaning), but is somewhat at odds with the literature on other self-transcendent experiences and emotions (e.g., mindfulness) which directly promote self-compassion.

Building Bridges or Gates between Game and Play?

Article

Mar 2025

Gilles Lecocq

This essay proposes an exploration of two distinct styles of cultural activities: one centered on individual engagement, exemplified by play, and another emphasizing comparative performance, exemplified by game. The primary aim is to examine how an unexpected creative power facilitates emancipatory somatic education to delineate the relational dynamics between adults and youth, which form the bedrock of well-being education. Additionally, it seeks to elucidate the correlation between the waning influence of stereotypes and two key psychosocial concepts: Compassionate Assertiveness and Authentic Resilience. To achieve these objectives, the article employs two methodological approaches. Firstly, it advocates for grounded theories to foster both intra- and interpersonal dialogues. Secondly, it underscores the importance of retrospective and prospective dimensions facilitated by interactions with adolescents and adults. These methodological dynamics collectively foster authentic strategies for organizational change within educational and sports contexts, encouraging meaningful interactions between young people and adults.

The Predictive and Mediating Role of Self-Compassion in Substance Use Disorders

Article

Mar 2025

Objective This study investigates the role of self-compassion in individuals with substance use disorders, focusing on its associations with emotion regulation difficulties, depression, anxiety, stress, and thought suppression. Method The study included 150 participants, aged 30 to 71 years, of Greek ethnicity, enrolled in a rehabilitation program at the Organization Against Drugs (OKANA). Participants completed four self-report measures: the Self-Compassion Scale, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale, and the White Bear Suppression Inventory. Data were collected between October 2023 and January 2024. Results Self-compassion was negatively correlated with difficulties in emotion regulation ( r = −.552, p < .05), as well as with depression, anxiety, and stress ( r = −.530, p < .05), and thought suppression ( r = −.428, p < .05). Stepwise regression analysis indicated that self-compassion significantly predicted lower levels of psychological distress (β = −.230, p < .001) and mediated the relationship between difficulties in emotion regulation and psychological distress. The final model accounted for 45.2% of the variance in depression, anxiety, and stress (95% CI [0.35, 0.55]). Bootstrap analysis (1,000 samples) confirmed the robustness of these findings. Conclusions These findings underscore the therapeutic potential of self-compassion interventions in addiction recovery. By promoting adaptive emotional regulation, reducing thought suppression, and alleviating psychological distress, self-compassion acts as a protective factor in managing challenges associated with substance use disorders. Incorporating self-compassion-focused interventions into rehabilitation programs may enhance emotional resilience and promote recovery outcomes across diverse populations.

Exploring the role of shame and self-compassion on the link between fibromyalgia symptoms and depression: Insights from mediation and moderation analyses

Article

Apr 2025

The intricacies of the fibromyalgia-depression link accentuate the need to further explore underlying psychosocial mechanisms. External shame resulting from fibromyalgia’s nature and associated impairment may increase the risk for depression. We explored whether being supportive and compassionate toward one’s perceived shortcomings would potentially weaken this association. This cross-sectional study comprised 138 women with fibromyalgia. Participants were recruited via patient associations and invited to complete an online survey. Descriptive, correlational, mediation and moderation analyses were performed to test the driving hypotheses. Both mediation and moderation analyses accounted for approximately 40% of the variance in depressive symptoms. Fibromyalgia severity was directly and indirectly— through external shame— associated with depressive symptoms. The shame-depressive symptoms link was weaker in participants with greater self-compassion skills. Findings point to the importance of shame and self-compassion and the need to address them in research and clinical contexts.

Anticipated Stigma from Family and Loneliness Among Chinese Gay Men: The Mediating Role of Guilt and the Moderating Role of Self-Compassion

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
AM J MENS HEALTH

In China, men are responsible for continuing the family line and the primary source of pressure for adult Chinese gay men comes from the expectations and demands of patrilineal nuclear families in general, parents in particular, and pressure to comply with social sexual orientation and identity norms and to perpetuate the family. Previous studies on the loneliness of LGBT individuals have paid less attention to the loneliness of gay men from a Chinese cultural perspective. This study investigated the relationship between anticipated stigma from family and loneliness among gay men. A sample of 408 gay men in China was recruited to investigate the associations between anticipated stigma from family, loneliness, guilt, and self-compassion using the 6-item University of California Los Angeles Loneliness Scale, the Anticipated Stigma Questionnaire, the Chinese version of the Guilt Inventory, and the Chinese version of the Self-Compassion Scale. The results showed that gay men’s anticipated stigma from family was positively associated with loneliness, guilt mediated the relationship between anticipated stigma from family and loneliness, and the isolation dimension of self-compassion moderated the relationship between anticipated stigma from family and guilt. The presence of high self-compassion mitigated the positive association between anticipated stigma from family and guilt.

Mindfulness and Mental Wellbeing Among Elite Athletes: The Mediating Role of Gratitude and Self-Compassion

Article

Apr 2025
PSYCHOL SPORT EXERC

Effects of Dispositional Mindfulness and Mindfulness-Based Interventions on the Psychosocial Consequences of Burn Injuries: A Systematic Review

Article

May 2025

Burn injuries lead to significant physical and psychological consequences, including chronic pain, post-traumatic stress, depression, and social isolation. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been proposed as a holistic approach to address these challenges in burn rehabilitation. This systematic review evaluates the efficacy of dispositional mindfulness and MBIs, including mindfulness meditation, yoga, and self-compassion training, in managing pain, emotional distress, and psychosocial adaptation in burn survivors. A comprehensive literature search was conducted through MEDLINE and Web of Science, covering studies up to February 2025, with additional papers retrieved from Google Scholar and Semantic Scholar. Studies were included if they reported quantitative data on the effects of MBIs in burn patients and/or their families, excluding opinion pieces, editorials, reviews, and qualitative studies. After screening 91 studies retrieved from the databases and adding a compelling paper retrieved from the other sources explored, 12 studies were included in the final pool, categorized into cross-sectional studies (n = 6), and intervention studies (n = 6). The extracted data included publication year, research design, sample characteristics, intervention details, main findings, and data for quality assessment. The synthesis of the results suggests that mindfulness is associated with reduced psychological symptoms, improved emotional regulation, and enhanced self-compassion, leading to better coping strategies and social reintegration. However, the long-term efficacy of MBIs remains inconclusive, and further research is needed to differentiate mindfulness-specific effects from those of general physical exercise. Evidence also suggests that mindfulness interventions may reduce anxiety and secondary trauma in children with burns and their caregivers. This review highlights the potential of MBIs as adjuncts to conventional burn rehabilitation programs, but further high-quality trials are needed to establish their sustained efficacy and to understand the specific benefits of mindfulness.

Mindfulness in Mental Health and Psychiatric Disorders of Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Article

Full-text available

May 2025
Pediatr Rep

Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) are important tools to address mental health issues in children and adolescents. However, previous studies provided variable results that suggest that the effectiveness of those third-wave Cognitive Behavioral Therapies remains uncertain. Objectives: The main objective is to assess the impact of MBIs on anxiety, depression, and stress in children and adolescents. The secondary objective is to examine the modalities of MBIs used, the duration of interventions, and potential confounding factors, such as age. Methods: A comprehensive search of multiple databases was conducted to identify randomized clinical trials (RCTs) evaluating the effects of MBIs on mental health outcomes in children and adolescents. The research was registered in PROSPERO, adhered to PRISMA guidelines, employed the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 tool, and calculated the effect sizes using mean differences. Results: Thirteen RCTs were included; ten were identified as having some concerns, while three were classified as having a low risk of bias. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) demonstrated a small positive effect on depression and anxiety, while non-specific MBIs showed a moderate positive effect both on depression and anxiety. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) was effective in reducing anxiety, depression (moderate positive effects on both), and stress symptoms. In one study, no significant improvements were seen on both anxiety and depression (for MBCT) and in another study on anxiety (for MBCT/MBSR). The meta-analysis did not identify a significant effect of mindfulness interventions on depression or anxiety. The high heterogeneity suggests varying outcomes, requiring further study of moderating factors. Conclusions: While some studies suggest benefits from MBIs, mainly MBCT’s ability to improve mental health outcomes in children and adolescents, their overall efficacy remains uncertain due to the high heterogeneity. The findings underscore the importance of considering the intervention type, duration, and moderating factors, such as age, when implementing MBIs.

Perfectionism and disordered eating in exercise and nutrition professionals: The role of self-compassion

Article

May 2025
Eat Behav

Self-awareness and self-leadership in a Swedish cross-contextual personal development course: a qualitative study on perceived personal development

Article

Full-text available

May 2025

Purpose The aim of this study is to explore the subjective personal experiences of individuals that have chosen to take a personal development course focused on increased self-awareness and self-leadership. Design/methodology/approach A phenomenological study was performed. The data included self-reported reflections collected during an educational course and a focus group interview two months after course completion. This included data from 14 individuals, 6 men and 8 women, working in various civilian contexts. Findings Self-awareness and self-leadership behaviors were identified with main and subsequent subthemes. Self-awareness included the following main theme: (1) Role of reflection, including the following subthemes: (a) tool for understanding one’s own needs, (b) creates awareness of change needed, (c) tool for problem solving and (d) creates awareness of avoidance behaviors. Self-leadership behaviors included the following main and subthemes: (1) changes in private life including: (a) changes for others, (b) conscious presence in private relationships, (c) increased compassion for oneself; and (2) changes in working life: (a) increased acceptance of others, (b) courage to speak up and (c) selectivity over work tasks. Research limitations/implications A qualitative approach was used; thus, limiting generalized findings. Practical implications The findings highlight individuals’ perceptions over their development process and what role the course had in the process. Originality/value The main contribution of the current study is outlining how and in what way individuals perceived a course on self-reflection and self-leadership influenced their self-development. The results outline specific areas of commonality that individuals believe the course contributed to change despite various work backgrounds. Opportunity for time to reflect oneself and in small groups with individuals unrelated to one’s usual background may be beneficial for offering a unique way to gain awareness of areas of meaningful change in individuals’ private and worklife.

Compassion

Chapter

May 2025

Dominik S. Meier

The effects of self-compassion in adolescents and young adults with type 1 diabetes: a pilot randomized controlled trial

Article

May 2025

Examining the moderating role of academic pressure in the indirect influence of parental psychological control on mental health problems through self-compassion

Article

Full-text available

May 2025
CURR PSYCHOL

Research has established positive associations between parental psychological control and mental health problems, but the specific factors that may mediate and moderate these relationships among Chinese adolescents remain unclear. The current study aims to examine whether academic pressure would moderate the indirect effect of parental psychological control on anxiety, depressive symptoms, and suicidality through self-compassion. 221 Chinese high school students (65.61% female; age: M = 15.32, SD = 0.49) participated in this two-wave longitudinal study conducted from November 2023 to May 2024. These participants completed a battery of measures assessing parental psychological control at Time 1, self-compassion at Time 2, academic pressure at Time 2, and anxiety, depressive symptoms, and suicidality at both Time 1 and Time 2. After controlling for initial anxiety, depressive symptoms, and suicidality, and demographic variables, initial parental psychological control was positively associated with anxiety, depressive symptoms, and suicidality six months later, with self-compassion fully mediating these associations. In addition, academic pressure at Time 2 served as a moderator intensifying the associations between self-compassion and the three mental health outcomes at Time 2, and accelerating the indirect effects of parental psychological control at Time 1 on these three outcomes at Time 2 through self-compassion at Time 2. Self-compassion emerges as a key mechanism underlying the detrimental effects of parental psychological control on anxiety, depressive symptoms, and suicidality. Moreover, academic pressure plays a significant role in promoting the negative impact of parental psychological control on the three mental health outcomes through self-compassion.

Compassion-Focused Therapy und Metta-basierte Therapie: Ein systematisches Review

Article

May 2025
VERHALTENSTHERAPIE

Einleitung: Mit der Compassion Focused Therapy und der Metta-basierten Therapie liegen zwei Verfahren vor, deren zentraler Ansatzpunkt die Förderung von Mitgefühl und Wohlwollen sich selbst und anderen gegenüber ist. Ziel der vorliegenden systematischen Literaturübersicht ist, den aktuellen Forschungsstand zur Wirksamkeit der beiden Verfahren für die Reduktion psychopathologischer Symptomatik sowie zur Steigerung des Selbstmitgefühls zu untersuchen. Methodik: Es wurde eine systematische Literaturrecherche auf den Datenbanken Google Scholar, PubMed, PsycINFO und Web of Science durchgeführt, um diejenigen Studien zu identifizieren, die entweder Compassion Focused Therapy oder Metta-basierte Therapie in einer klinisch relevanten Stichprobe anwendeten. Ergebnisse: Es konnten 21 Studien mit einem randomisierten, kontrollierten Design identifiziert werden. Insgesamt wurden die Daten von 1’102 Versuchspersonen in die systematische Literaturübersicht miteinbezogen. Für beide Verfahren lässt sich eine Verbesserung der psychopathologischen Symptomatik und des Selbstmitgefühls feststellen. Nach aktueller Studienlage besteht eine höhere Evidenzlage für die Wirksamkeit der Compassion Focused Therapy im Vergleich zur Metta-basierten Therapie. Schlussfolgerung: Beide Verfahren stellen eine sinnvolle Erweiterung des psychotherapeutischen Verfahrensrepertoires dar. Zugleich zeigte sich jedoch auch ein deutlicher Unterschied zwischen beiden Verfahren, sodass innerhalb der Compassion Focused Therapy ein breiteres Spektrum an kognitiv-verhaltenstherapeutischen Methoden zum Einsatz kommt, die auch für zukünftige Weiterentwicklungen der Metta-basierten Therapie in Erwägung gezogen werden sollten.

What is positive psychological functioning?

Article

May 2025

Frank Martela

Healing Through Self After Harm by Others: The Associations Between Self-Compassion, Trauma-Related Shame, and Physical Health

Article

May 2025

Those who have experienced interpersonal violence are at an increased risk for a variety of adverse mental and physical health outcomes. As such, it is imperative that research look for ways to offset some of these adverse outcomes. Current studies suggest that self-compassion may help reduce the adverse physical health effects associated with interpersonal violence, including trauma-related shame specifically. The current study explored the associations between self-compassion, trauma-related shame, and physical health outcomes among those who have experienced interpersonal violence. In particular, this study aimed to address the following research questions: (a) How is trauma-related shame associated with physical health in survivors of interpersonal violence? And (b) How is self-compassion related to physical health, even when accounting for trauma-related shame in survivors of interpersonal violence? An online survey via Qualtrics was given to 179 participants to assess the variables of interest: trauma-related shame, self-compassion, and physical health. A hierarchical linear regression was conducted, and the results indicated that self-compassion and trauma-related shame, when taken together, predicted self-reported physical health outcomes. In addition, when tested separately, both trauma-related shame and self-compassion still predicted physical health outcomes. These results provide some support for addressing trauma-related shame and self-compassion in the treatment of those who have experienced interpersonal violence, particularly as a means of addressing physical health concerns. Further research is needed to explore the temporal relationship between the variables of interest, but the current study offers evidence of the benefits of reducing trauma-related shame and increasing self-compassion for those who have experienced interpersonal violence.

Unraveling the link between mindfulness facets and self-compassion dimensions with non-suicidal self-injury functions and behaviors

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
CURR PSYCHOL

Research has begun to establish a negative relationship between non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) with trait self-compassion and trait mindfulness, highlighting the potential protective utility of these traits. However, examining mindfulness facets and self-compassion dimensions with key functions that underlie NSSI remains largely unexplored. This study investigated the relationship between mindfulness facets and the self-compassion dimensions (compassionate self-responding [CS] and uncompassionate self-responding [UCS]), with key NSSI functions (affect regulation and self-punishment) and NSSI behaviors (history and versatility). Participants were 273 adults with and without a history of NSSI (80.2% women, Mage = 34.45, SDage = 13.18) who completed self-report measures of NSSI, trait self-compassion, and trait mindfulness. Pearson’s correlation analysis found significant associations between self-compassion dimensions and mindfulness facets (act with awareness, describe, nonjudge, and nonreact) with a history of NSSI. Results indicated that UCS and the describe facet negatively predicted NSSI history, while only act with awareness negatively predicted versatility. In terms of function, the nonjudge (positive association) and describe (negative association) facets predicted the affect regulation function of NSSI, while UCS predicted the self-punishment function. This study provides a more nuanced picture of the relationship between trait mindfulness and trait self-compassion with engagement in NSSI. Overall, results suggest that although lower reports of mindfulness facets are negatively linked to NSSI history, difficulties in describing thoughts and emotions may be linked to the affect regulation function of NSSI. The findings may suggest teaching self-compassion-based skills may be beneficial for individuals who engage in NSSI if self-punishment serves as an underlying function.

Self-care practices among hospice nurses in general hospitals in China: A qualitative study

Article

Apr 2025

Community, courage, culture and care: a qualitative study exploring the experiences of planetary health leadership in the UK health context

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Planetary health and the delivery of planetary healthcare are growing concerns for health and health institutions globally. While the leadership required to navigate this evolving arena is an area of increasing study, little research exists exploring the experience and perceptions of leaders in this field. Aim This study aimed to explore the experiences and perceptions of leaders working towards planetary health in the UK health context, with a view to making recommendations on leadership and leadership development in this field. Methods A qualitative study with 25 participants with experience of planetary health and/or planetary healthcare leadership. Virtual semistructured interviews were used for data collection and thematically analysed. Results Six themes were identified: creating community; managing the scale of the challenge; morality; creating consensus; shaping culture and identity (as leader and/or as activist). Conclusions This study highlights the relational, collaborative and moral aspects of leadership as central to the experience of planetary health leadership, offering recommendations for leadership educators to strengthen leadership development in this field. It also identified the critical need for the well-being needs of leaders navigating this emotive and uncharted territory to be appreciated and responded to, along with the importance of legitimising and professionalising action and leadership in this field.

A Systematic Review of Self-report Measures Used to Assess Compassion in Children and Young People

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025
Mindfulness

Objectives Scientific interest in compassion has increased in recent years. However, research highlights issues related to the measurement of compassion in children and young people (CYP). This systematic review aimed to describe and critically appraise measures of self- and other-compassion developed and/or validated with CYP. Method Medline, PsycInfo and Web of Science were searched from inception to 31 st July 2024 to identify English language, peer-reviewed psychometric papers on the development or validation of compassion measures for use with CYP. The measures were critically reviewed and rated for quality. Results Nineteen articles were included that outlined psychometric properties of eight compassion measures: Compassionate Engagement and Actions Scales—Adolescence (CEAS-A); Compassion Scale – Adolescence (CS-A); Compassion Scale—Child (CS-C); Self-Compassion Scale (SCS); Self-Compassion Scale – Child (SCS-C); Self-Compassion Scale—Youth (SCS-Y); Self-Compassionate Reactions Scale – Child (SCRS-C); Shortened Self-Compassion Scale—Adolescence (S-SCS-A). Quality ratings ranged from 2 to 9 out of 14. The CEAS-A received the highest rating (9), followed by the SCS-Y (8), SCS (7) and CS-C (7). No measure captured all five compassion elements and evidence for test–retest reliability and floor and ceiling effects was largely absent. Most papers assessed self-compassion and used (translated, adapted versions of) the SCS and SCS-Y. Conclusions This review suggests there are no psychometrically robust measures that comprehensively assess self- and other- compassion in CYP, potentially impeding research. The psychometric quality of existing compassion measures for CYP should be improved, and/or a new measure should be developed, and include the measurement of compassion for others. Preregistration This study is not preregistered.

Retrospective Childhood Emotional Maltreatment and Adolescent Problem Behaviors Trajectories: The Mediating Roles of Neuroticism and Self-Compassion

Article

Apr 2025
CHILD YOUTH SERV REV

Self-Care

Chapter

Apr 2025

This chapter considers self-care to be a broad definition of measures for improving, restoring, maintaining, and protecting the welfare of people. Researchers are increasingly focusing on the development of self-care therapies for health professionals to manage emotional trauma and moral challenges associated with employment. Self-care for health professionals is the practice of taking care of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social well-being to cope with the demands and pressures of their roles. As health professionals are exposed to high levels of stress, demanding long working hours, and emotional work, self-care is important to all health professionals. Organisational climate, workplace factors, and moral distress further affect the health and well-being of staff. Self-care can prevent burnout, suffering, emotional trauma, and improve personal and professional satisfaction, resilience, and performance. The need to prioritise self-care for staff is fundamental to the provision of caring for patients’ spiritual needs, undertaking a spiritual assessment in the provision of high-quality patient care. Self-care is a broad range of personal and organisational resources, strategies, and techniques that healthcare professionals can use to reduce moral distress. Self-care must be nurtured to enhance an understanding of our spirituality and who we are as persons first when faced with the psychological demands associated with healthcare. Unless we know who we are and how we are, it can be difficult to accept or take care of a person’s spiritual needs to enable them to flourish. We cannot give to others that we do not possess ourselves.

"Caring for Oneself Program": Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial of an Online Positive Psychoeducational Intervention for Informal Caregivers of Older Adults

Article

Apr 2025

Self-Compassion: The Key to Suicide Prevention in Young People

Chapter

Apr 2025

Swati Patra

The young people comprise the age group of 10–24 years as per the World Health Organization. The (National Youth Policy of India in Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India. https://www.rgniyd.gov.in/sites/default/files/pdfs/scheme/nyp_2014.pdf, 2014) defines youth as 15–29 years of age group. It is of utmost concern that this young age group witnesses a significant burden of death by suicide. The suicide death rate has increased by 7.2% (NCRB in Accidental deaths and suicides in India 2021. National Crime Records Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/library/resource/accidental-deaths-suicides-in-india-2021/, 2021) from 2020 to 2021. The NCRB data shows a steady increase in the number of students who committed suicide from 9905 in 2017, 10,159 in 2018, 12,526 in 2020 to 13,089 in 2021. Various measures and intervention programmes have been undertaken for addressing this crucial concern of loss of human resources. This paper explores the use of self-compassion as intrapersonal character strength to address suicidal thought and behaviour in young people. Suicidal thought and behaviour underlies a sense of hopelessness and lack of self-esteem. The individual becomes disinterested in life and experiences loss of self-belief and self-confidence. All these reflect a lack of being compassionate towards oneself. The core elements of self-compassion, namely self-kindness, common humanity and mindfulness, facilitates being kind to oneself and developing a perspective. It can effectively address the high emotionality characteristic of the developmental stages of the young people. This in turn can affect resilience and impact the suicidal behaviour. The present chapter will discuss various theoretical models including the Indian perspective, and highlight self-compassion as a key factor in suicide prevention in the young people.

The Mediating Role of Rumination and Worry in the Relationship of Self- Compassion with Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2024

The aim of present study was to determine the relationship between Rumination and Worry as mediators between Self-compassion, Depression and Anxiety Symptoms among students of University of Tehran. This study employs a correlational descriptive research design. The statistical society consisted entirely of Tehran University students in 2019-2020. A convenience sampling method was employed to identify 300 students from the University of Tehran. The participants completed the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Pennsylvania State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ), the Nolen-Hoeksema Rumination Responses Questionnaire (RRS), and the Neff Self-Compassion Questionnaire (SCS). Descriptive and inferential statistical indicators, such as frequency, mean, percentage, standard deviation, correlation coefficient, and path analysis, were employed to analyze the data. Data modeling was performed by AMOS software. The results indicated that Self-compassion was negatively related to Depression, Rumination, State-Trait Anxiety and Worry (p<0.005). Moreover, the AMOS analysis showed the mediation role of worry and rumination in the relationship between self-compassion and depression (p<0.005) and anxiety (p<0.001). In sum, the findings suggest that the relationship between Self-compassion and Anxiety and Depression is not a simple linear. Self-compassion reduces the State-Trait anxiety and depression by reducing rumination and worry.

Self-compassion - A cure for anxiety?

Article

Apr 2025

Marek Vich

Adverse childhood experiences, adult emotional eating, and the role of self-compassion

Article

Apr 2025
Eat Behav

Teaching Behavioral Science

Chapter

Mar 2025

Behavioral science has been an integral part of the family medicine curriculum since the inception of the specialty. Its inclusion prepares family physicians to provide patient-centered care, communicate with empathy and compassion, exercise cultural humility, and manage mental health issues commonly seen in primary care. Behavioral science curricula will also train clinicians to increase their self-awareness and reflective practices so that they might develop skills to manage stress and maintain well-being in the face of the challenges inherent in health care. Building on the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Family Medicine Residency Program Requirements, this chapter will provide guidance on what to include in a behavioral medicine curriculum, and various methods for its dissemination.

Dyadic Effects of Stigma and Self-Compassion on Resilience of Schizophrenic Patients and Caregivers During Recovery: An Actor-Partner Interdependence Mediation Model

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2025

Purpose In this study, dyadic analysis was used to explore the dyadic effect of stigma on resilience and whether self-compassion plays a mediating role in the dyadic relationship between schizophrenia patients and primary caregivers during recovery. Methods A total of 210 patients with schizophrenia and their primary caregivers from a tertiary hospital in Hubei Province were selected as the research objects by convenience sampling method. The investigation was conducted with the General Information Questionnaire, Stigma Scale, Self-Compassion Scale and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. Results This study found that the mental illness stigma of patients with schizophrenia at the recovery stage was negatively correlated with their self-compassion and resilience, as well as the self-compassion and resilience of their primary caregivers (r=−0.644, −0.653, −0.431, −0.362, all P<0.05). The mental illness stigma of primary caregivers of patients with schizophrenia in recovery period was negatively correlated with self-compassion and psychological resilience, and self-compassion and psychological resilience of patients (r=−0.291, −0.430, −0.375, −0.282, all P<0.05). The study found that the mental illness stigma of schizophrenia patients and their primary caregivers had a significant subjective impact on their resilience. The stigma of schizophrenia convalescence patients and their primary caregivers has a significant indirect effect on each other’s psychological resilience through self-compassion. Conclusion This study found that stigma not only directly affects the resilience of patients with schizophrenia and their primary caregivers, but also plays a mediating role in the resilience of patients themselves and their caregivers through self-compassion. It is recommended that medical staff carry out intervention based on dyadic perspective to help patients and their caregivers improve their ability to recover from difficulties, adapt and grow from adversity and crisis, attach importance to and promote the close relationship and positive interaction between them, so as to jointly cope with disease challenges and help patients return to society.

A Multivariate Model of Gender Differences in Adolescents' Internalizing and Externalizing Problems

Article

Full-text available

Sep 1999

Gender differences observed in interpersonal and self-critical vulnerabilities, reactivity to stressful life events, quality of relationships, and self-concepts inform a multivariate theoretical model of the moderating effects of gender on internalizing and externalizing problems in adolescence. To test this model, data were collected in a 1-year prospective study from an ethnically diverse sample of 460 middle school students. Increases in girls' internalizing symptoms, compared with boys', were partly explained by greater stability in girls' interpersonal vulnerabilities and greater magnitude in coefficients linking girls' relationships with parents and peers and internalizing problems. Boys' risks for externalizing problems, compared with girls', were partly explained by the greater stability in boys' vulnerability to self-criticism. Coefficients for most pathways in the model are similar for boys and girls.

The Self-Compassion Scale: Validation and Psychometric Properties within the Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling Framework

Article

Full-text available

Jul 2022

The Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) is one of the several tools for measuring compassionate self-attitude. Despite its popularity, there is an ongoing controversy regarding its factor structure. Previous studies employing exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) found support for the single-bifactor (one general and six group factors) model over the competing two-bifactor (two general factors representing compassionate and uncompassionate self-responding and six group factors) model. Here, we replicated and extended previous ESEM studies through examining the validity and dimensionality of different bifactor models in a sample of UK adults. Model fit was examined across two estimators: maximum likelihood and weighted least square mean and variance adjusted. Finally, we investigated whether one or two observed scores of the SCS can better identify cases of depression, anxiety, and mental wellbeing. Both bifactor models showed good fit to the data irrespective of the estimators used, but only the single-bifactor model demonstrated satisfactory convergent and criterion validity and unidimensionality. The total observed SCS score detected depression, anxiety and high mental wellbeing with higher accuracy than any of the two scores. Overall, we propose to use the total score of the SCS in further research and practice.

Effectiveness of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) vs. the Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) Programs in Clinical and Health Psychologist Trainees

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2022
Mindfulness

Objectives This study compares the effectiveness of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) programs in improving mindfulness and self-compassion skills among clinical and health psychology trainees, and analyzes their effects on anxiety and depression. Methods A total of 88 participants were allocated to three conditions: MBSR training (n = 26), MSC training (n = 34), and control group (n = 28). Their levels of mindfulness, self-compassion, anxiety, and depression were measured at pre- and post-intervention. Results Compared to the control group, participants in the MBSR training showed significant improvements in mindfulness and reductions in anxiety and depression from pre to post. Participants in the MSC training, compared to the control group, reported significant increases in mindfulness and self-compassion. We observed that anxiety levels remained stable in the MSC group, while participants in the control group reported an increase in their scores over time. The reduction in depression scores observed among MSC participants did not differ, however, from that observed among members of the control group. Mindfulness, self-compassion, and anxiety scores presented similar trajectories in MBSR and MSC groups, while the MBSR group demonstrated a significantly greater reduction in depression levels compared to the MSC group. Conclusions Incorporating these programs into the psychologists’ training should be considered, as desirable skills such as mindfulness and self-compassion are enhanced. MBSR and MSC could contribute to prevent mental health problems in this population.

Development of the Japanese Version of the State Self-Compassion Scale (SSCS-J)

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2022

Research in the U.S. developed and validated the State Self-Compassion Scale (SSCS), which measures self-compassionate reactions toward a specific negative event. The current study is aimed at developing the Japanese version of the State Self-Compassion Scale (SSCS-J) and extending previous findings in the U.S. by showing measurement invariance across sexes and demonstrating the construct validity of this scale. Across two studies (n = 596 in Study 1, n = 474 in Study 2), the bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling representation of the SSCS-J showed excellent fit in which a single global factor (i.e., self-compassion) and most of the specific factors (six subscales) were well defined. Study 1 further provided evidence for the measurement invariance across sexes. The SSCS-J was related with higher trait self-compassion and lower fear of and negative beliefs about self-compassion. In Study 2, participants who were instructed to be self-compassionate reported higher scores in the SSCS-J relative to those in the control condition. These results attest to the replicability of the factor structure of the SSCS in Japan and provide further evidence for the construct validity of this scale.

Improving Mental Health Among Transgender Adolescents: Implementing Mindful Self-Compassion for Teens

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2021

The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary outcomes of an online self-compassion intervention for transgender adolescents, with the aim of improving mental health. Participants identified as transgender or gender expansive, were between the ages of 13 and 17, and lived in the U.S. or Canada. The empirically-based self-compassion program, Mindful Self-Compassion for Teens (formerly Making Friends with Yourself) was implemented in eight 1.5 hour sessions on the Zoom platform by two trained instructors. Surveys were administered pre-, post-intervention, and at 3 months follow-up, and qualitative data were collected through end-of-program interviews and open-ended questions on the post-survey. All protocols were approved by the university IRB. Quantitative data analysis included repeated measures ANOVAs, and qualitative data were analyzed via both inductive and deductive methods. Results indicated that all but one psychosocial measure significantly improved from pre- to post-intervention, which then significantly improved at 3-month follow-up; most other improvements were maintained at follow-up. Four themes emerged from the qualitative data: virtual safe space; connection to body; personal growth; and recommended course changes and are discussed. Results suggest that self-compassion interventions can be incorporated into therapy programs to support and improve mental health for transgender adolescents.

Investigating the Influence of Self-Compassion-Focused Interventions on Posttraumatic Stress: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Article

Full-text available

Sep 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives Self-compassion-focused interventions may be able to decrease posttraumatic stress symptoms. However, previous studies demonstrated mixed effects in which a series of confounders were not systematically quantified. In this study, a systematic review with meta-analysis was conducted to quantify the effects of self-compassion-focused therapies on posttraumatic stress disorder. Methods Twelve eligible studies were included after a systematic search of databases. Outcome measures were extracted for posttraumatic stress disorder. Results Our data indicated a medium protective effect on posttraumatic stress symptoms (SMD = − 0.65), with most of the studies (8/12) coming from clinical settings. More importantly, longer interventions were associated with better posttraumatic stress outcomes (p < 0.001). Baseline or changes in self-compassion scores were not associated with posttraumatic stress outcomes post-interventions. Conclusions Overall, findings from this meta-analysis quantified the complex influence of self-compassion-focused interventions on posttraumatic stress symptoms and may provide insights for optimizing intervention strategies. Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Registration: PROSPERO CRD42020208663

Growth after Trauma: The Role of Self-Compassion following Hurricane Harvey

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2021

The psychological impact of a traumatic event includes potentially both negative (e.g., PTSD, depression, and anxiety) as well as positive (e.g., post-traumatic growth) outcomes. The construct of self-compassion—the capacity to be compassionate towards oneself—has been associated with various psychological benefits following disasters; however, the association between self-compassion and PTG have not yet been examined in natural disaster settings. This study aimed to examine the relationship between these constructs, with self-compassion as a potential mediator in this relationship. Three hundred and nine undergraduate students affected by the impact of Hurricane Harvey were recruited. Statistical analyses revealed a significant mediation effect, with PTSD symptoms being both directly and indirectly (via self-compassion) associated with PTG. The capacity to grow from traumatic experiences is mediated by one’s disposition to be compassionate towards oneself, serving as a resilience factor to provide individuals with the cognitive and emotional resources to grow after trauma. These findings have significant implications in both clinical and research contexts, including the use of self-compassion interventions to protect against PTSD and other comorbid psychopathology and also act as a catalyst for growth following natural disaster events.

Self-compassion mindsets can predict statistics course performance via intelligence mindsets and statistics anxiety

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2021
LEARN INDIVID DIFFER

One consistent impediment to college students' performance in statistics courses is statistics anxiety. However, people who endorse intelligence growth mindsets report lower statistics anxiety and achieve higher grades. We examined whether adopting a self-compassion growth mindset was an antecedent to an intelligence growth mindset, reduced statistics anxiety, and ultimately, lead to better grades. Ninety undergraduate students who took an Introductory Research Methods and Statistics course at a mid-south university reported their implicit theories of self-compassion and intelligence, statistics anxiety, and demographic information twice during the semester. Final grade percentages were obtained directly from the course instructor after the semester concluded. The results demonstrated a serial indirect effect of self-compassion growth mindset affecting the final grade received, first through intelligence growth mindset and then through statistics anxiety. Alternative serial indirect effect models were conducted, but none were significant. Implications of these results for the broader implicit theories, statistics anxiety literature, and education were discussed.

You and I Both: Self-Compassion Reduces Self-Other Differences in Evaluation of Showing Vulnerability

Article

Full-text available

Jul 2021
Pers Soc Psychol Bull

People tend to be overly critical of their own displays of vulnerability, whereas observers evaluate others' showing of vulnerability rather positively (beautiful mess effect). We propose that self-compassion might buffer against such misperceptions of one's own vulnerabilities. When confronted with challenging situations, self-compassionate people are kind to themselves, see adversity as inevitable, and face the difficulty of their circumstances without overexaggeration. Thus, we hypothesized reduced self-other differences in the evaluation of showing vulnerability in self-compassionate individuals. The hypothesis was addressed in four studies. The first two studies measured self-compassion either immediately (Study 1a) or substantially (Study 1b) before participants evaluated showing of vulnerability. Studies 2 and 3 tested the generalizability of the hypothesis across different situations as well as the discriminant validity of self-compassion's role in the reduction of the beautiful mess effect. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Compassion toward others and self-compassion predict mental and physical well-being: a 5-year longitudinal study of 1090 community-dwelling adults across the lifespan

Article

Full-text available

Jul 2021

There is growing interest in the role of compassion in promoting health and well-being, with cross-sectional data showing an inverse correlation with loneliness. This is the first longitudinal study examining both compassion toward others (CTO) and compassion toward self (CTS) as predictors of mental and physical health outcomes including loneliness, across adult lifespan. We followed 552 women and 538 men in San Diego County for up to 7.5 (mean 4.8 and SD 2.2) years, using validated rating scales for CTO, CTS, and loneliness. Linear mixed-effects models were employed to examine age- and sex-related trajectories of CTO and CTS over time. Linear regression models were used to evaluate baseline and longitudinal relationships of CTO and CTS with mental well-being, physical well-being, and loneliness. CTS and CTO were weakly intercorrelated. Women had higher baseline CTO than men. While CTO was stable over time and across the lifespan, CTS scores had an inverse U-shaped relationship with age, peaking around age 77. There were significant baseline × slope interactions of both CTO and CTS predicting improvements in physical well-being in adults <60 years old. Increases in CTO and CTS predicted improvements in mental well-being. Higher baseline CTO and CTS as well as increases in CTO and CTS scores predicted lower loneliness scores at follow-up. Thus, CTO and CTS were associated with better mental well-being and loneliness across the adult lifespan, and physical well-being in younger adults, and are promising targets for interventions to improve health outcomes.

Self-compassion and Shame Among Rape Survivors

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2021

Women are at increased risk for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression associated with rape, and shame plays a vital role in the development and maintenance of PTSD and depression. Thus, there is a need to identify factors that may decrease shame among female survivors of adult rape. Self-compassion may be one such factor. The present study used path analysis in MPlus version 7.3 to examine the indirect effect of self-compassion on PTSD and depression via rape-related shame. We hypothesized that higher levels of self-compassion would be associated with lower levels of rape-related shame, which in turn would be associated with lower levels of PTSD and depression. College women (N = 305) who reported experiencing rape completed anonymous online surveys assessing rape, self-compassion, rape-related shame, PTSD, and depression. Consistent with our hypothesis, results indicated that self-compassion was negatively associated with assault-related shame, which in turn was positively associated with PTSD and depression. There was also a significant indirect effect of self-compassion on PTSD and depression via rape-related shame. Further, rape-related shame fully explained the relation between self-compassion and PTSD. Findings suggest that self-compassion may be an appropriate target to reduce rape-related shame and may subsequently facilitate reductions in PTSD and depression symptoms.

Burnout in Professional Psychotherapists: Relationships with Self-Compassion, Work-Life Balance, and Telepressure

Article

Full-text available

May 2021
Int J Environ Res Publ Health

Though negative impacts of COVID-19 on occupational mental health have been re-ported, the mental health of psychotherapists has not been evaluated in depth. As this occupational group treats ever-increasing mental health problems, it is essential to ap-praise key factors for their mental health. Accordingly this study aimed to explore burnout of professional psychotherapists. 110 completed self-report measures regarding burnout, self-compassion, work-life balance and telepressure. Correlation, regression and moderation analyses were conducted. Both of the burnout components—emotional ex-haustion and depersonalisation—were positively associated with weekly working hours and telepressure, and negatively associated with age, self-compassion and work-life balance. Weekly working hours and work-life balance were significant predictors of emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation. Lastly, self-compassion partially mediated the relationship between work-life balance and emotional exhaustion but did not mediate the relationship between work-life balance and depersonalisation. Findings suggest that maintaining high work-life balance is particularly important for the mental health of psychotherapists, protecting them from burnout. Moreover, self-compassion needs to be cultivated to mitigate emotional exhaustion. Mental health care for this occupational group needs to be implemented to achieve sustainable mental health care for workers and the public.

Association of Self-Compassion With Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors and Non-suicidal Self Injury: A Meta-Analysis

Article

Full-text available

May 2021

Objectives: Self-compassion functions as a psychological buffer in the face of negative life experiences. Considering that suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs) and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) are often accompanied by intense negative feelings about the self (e.g., self-loathing, self-isolation), self-compassion may have the potential to alleviate these negative attitudes and feelings toward oneself. This meta-analysis investigated the associations of self-compassion with STBs and NSSI. Methods: A literature search finalized in August 2020 identified 18 eligible studies (13 STB effect sizes and seven NSSI effect sizes), including 8,058 participants. Two studies were longitudinal studies, and the remainder were cross-sectional studies. A random-effects meta-analysis was conducted using CMA 3.0. Subgroup analyses, meta-regression, and publication bias analyses were conducted to probe potential sources of heterogeneity. Results: With regard to STBs, a moderate effect size was found for self-compassion (r = −0.34, k = 13). Positively worded subscales exhibited statistically significant effect sizes: self-kindness (r = −0.21, k = 4), common humanity (r = −0.20, k = 4), and mindfulness (r = −0.15, k = 4). For NSSI, a small effect size was found for self-compassion (r = −0.29, k = 7). There was a large heterogeneity (I² = 80.92% for STBs, I² = 86.25% for NSSI), and publication bias was minimal. Subgroup analysis results showed that sample characteristic was a moderator, such that a larger effect size was witnessed in clinical patients than sexually/racially marginalized individuals, college students, and healthy-functioning community adolescents. Conclusions: Self-compassion was negatively associated with STBs and NSSI, and the effect size of self-compassion was larger for STBs than NSSI. More evidence is necessary to gauge a clinically significant protective role that self-compassion may play by soliciting results from future longitudinal studies or intervention studies.

A Meta-Analysis of the Relation Between Self-Compassion and Self-Efficacy

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives Self-compassion may play a role in protecting one’s self-efficacy in the face of failures. While research suggests a positive association between self-compassion and self-efficacy, the current study represents the first meta-analytic analysis of this association. Potential moderators including age, publication type, and sample type were also explored.Methods Random-effects models were used to estimate the average effect size (ES) for the associations between self-compassion total score and self-efficacy and between self-compassion subscales and self-efficacy across 60 studies providing a total of 109 effect sizes.ResultsResults showed a positive association between self-compassion total score and self-efficacy (r = .35), positive associations between self-compassion positive subscales and self-efficacy, and negative associations between self-compassion negative subscales and self-efficacy. Results also revealed that the associations between self-compassion subscales and self-efficacy were larger in non-students than in students, and in published studies versus unpublished studies.Conclusions Clinical interventions that cultivate self-compassion may be conducive to one’s sense of self-efficacy.

Self-Compassion and Anxiety and Depression in Chronic Physical Illness Populations: a Systematic Review

Article

Full-text available

Jul 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives Anxiety and depression are common in chronic physical illness populations. Self-compassion, the motivation and the capacity to alleviate one’s own suffering, is associated with reduced anxiety and depression in mental health populations. This review aimed to collate available research showing links between self-compassion and anxiety and depression in chronic physical illness populations. Methods This study is a systematic review of English language studies investigating univariate and multivariate correlates of anxiety and depression by self-compassion constructs in adult chronic physical illness populations. Results Twenty papers, reporting data from 16 unique studies, were included. Half sampled cancer patients. Self-compassion scores consistently showed moderate to large inverse associations with anxiety and depression over both univariate ( r = −.37 to −.53 and r = −.38 to −.66, respectively) and multivariate analyses (β =.01 to β = −.55 and β = −.17 to β = −.59, respectively). Worry and depressive brooding, and shame, mediated relationships between self-compassion and anxiety and depression. Conclusions Although findings suggest that self-compassion processes may have a role in alleviating anxiety and depression in chronic physical illness populations, methodological limitations limit confidence in this proposition. Prospective studies that identify theoretically plausible mediators and moderators are required before the development or modification of therapeutic interventions.

“Everything Is Gonna Be Alright with Me”: The Role of Self-Compassion, Affect, and Coping in Negative Emotional Symptoms during Coronavirus Quarantine

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2021
Int J Environ Res Publ Health

Self-compassion has been associated with less distress, particularly when people face stressful and negative events. This study analyzed the mediation role of coping and affect in the relation between self-compassion and negative emotional symptoms during the quarantine decreed by Portuguese Health Authorities in the first phase of the coronavirus outbreak. A total of 428 Portuguese adults (75% women; Mage = 40.8, SD = 11.6) completed an online survey comprised by the Self-Compassion Scale (predictor); Short Version of Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (outcomes); The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule; and Brief-COPE. These instruments were adapted to COVID 19’s epidemic. Parallel mediation analyses demonstrated that self-compassionate participants were at less risk of suffering from symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress during the quarantine. Plus, the relation between self-compassion and depressive, anxious, and stress symptoms were mediated by negative affect and dysfunctional coping style, but only for symptoms of depression. The findings support coping strategies and affect as links between self-compassion and distress but also the importance of separately analyzing the role of self-compassion, negative affect, and coping on symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress. Low self-compassion might increase negative affect, maintaining stress responses to face demanding events during the COVID-19 epidemic. Results were discussed in the context of the pandemic outbreak.

Mindful Self-Compassion program for chronic pain patients: A randomized controlled trial

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2021

Background Although evidence‐based psychological treatments for chronic pain have been demonstrated to be effective for a variety of outcomes, modest effects observed in recent reviews indicate scope for improvement. Self‐compassion promotes a proactive attitude towards self‐care and actively seeking relief from suffering. Consequently, more compassionate people experience better physical, psychological, and interpersonal wellbeing. Methods We conducted a single‐blind, randomized, controlled trial to examine the effects of a Mindful Self‐Compassion program (MSC) on relevant clinical outcomes in patients with chronic pain. Patients were randomly assigned to one of the two intervention arms: MSC or Cognitive‐Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The protocols of both intervention arms were standardized and consisted of a 150‐minute session once every 8 weeks formatted to groups of no more than 20 participants. The primary outcome was self‐compassion, measured with the self‐compassion scale (SCS). The secondary outcomes were other pain‐related scores, quality‐of‐life measures, and anxiety and depression scores. Results Sixty‐two and sixty‐one patients were assigned to the MSC and CBT group, respectively. The MSC intervention was more effective than CBT for self‐compassion (ATE = 0.126, p < 0.05). The secondary outcomes, pain acceptance (ATE = 5.214, p < 0.01), pain interference (ATE = ‐0.393, p < 0.05), catastrophizing (ATE = ‐2.139, p < 0.10), and anxiety (ATE = ‐0.902, p < 0.05), were also favored in the experimental arm (MSC). No serious adverse events were observed. Conclusions MSC is an appropriate therapeutic approach for chronic pain patients and may result in greater benefits on self‐compassion and emotional well‐being than CBT.

Self-Compassion and Coping: a Meta-Analysis

Article

Full-text available

May 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives Self-compassion, a positive and caring attitude toward oneself, has been identified as an important correlate of coping in stressful situations. High self-compassion is related to higher use of adaptive and less maladaptive coping in demanding or painful situations. However, estimates of these relations in terms of specific adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies have remained inconclusive. Therefore, the present meta-analysis investigates the relation between self-compassion and different forms of adaptive and maladaptive coping. It also takes into account potential moderators such as age, gender, and regional background.MethodsA systematic literature search resulted in k = 136 samples with an overall sample size of N = 38,913. Random-effects models were used to integrate the z-transformed Pearson correlation coefficients.ResultsAnalyses yielded a positive correlation between self-compassion and adaptive coping (r = .306) and a negative correlation between self-compassion and maladaptive coping (r = − .500). The association of self-compassion with emotional approach coping was positive (r = .340), as was the association with problem-focused coping (r = .205). Participants’ age appeared to be a significant moderator of the relation between self-compassion and coping.Conclusions Self-compassion is important for understanding the mechanisms involved in coping with stress and demanding life events. The size and direction of correlations depend on the coping strategies considered, with protective effects of self-compassion with respect to maladaptive coping being the most pronounced. Further research should examine the relation between self-compassion and coping in more detail and focus on additional moderators.Trial RegistrationThe registration identifier is CRD42018104926.

Self-Compassion and Current Close Interpersonal Relationships: A Scoping Literature Review

Article

Full-text available

May 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives In order to provide a broad overview of the body of peer-reviewed literature on self-compassion and close relationships, this scoping review describes how self-compassion relates to thoughts, feelings, and behaviors within the context of current personal relationships between family members, romantic partners, friends, or others referred to as “close.”Methods Two reviewers independently screened peer-reviewed articles retrieved based on a defined search strategy within three online databases, extracted data from 72 articles that met inclusion criteria by consensus, and summarized findings thematically.ResultsWith few exceptions, self-compassion is positively associated with secure attachment, adaptive parenting behaviors, healthy family, romantic and friendship functioning, and constructive conflict and transgression repair behavior. In families, evidence suggests that parent self-compassion is linked to supportive parenting behavior, which is in turn linked to higher levels of child self-compassion.Conclusions Self-compassion is associated with a wide variety of close interpersonal relationship benefits. These associations may be complex and bidirectional, such that positive social relationships promote self-compassion, while self-compassion promotes relational and emotional well-being. For a deeper understanding of these nuances and to establish causality, future research should include heterogeneous samples, longitudinal designs, and observational and multi-informant methodologies, and consider attachment style and personality trait covariates. The potential implications for interventional research are discussed.

Investigating Psychometric Properties of the Self-Compassion Scale Using Rasch Methodology

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives The 26-item Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) and its short 12-item version (SCS-SF) were reported to have acceptable psychometric properties, and both scales are widely used to assess self-compassion in individuals. However, recent investigations were inconsistent regarding factor structure of the SCS, and psychometric properties of the scale were not tested for consistency with principles of fundamental measurement using appropriate methodology such as Rasch analysis. Methods A partial credit Rasch model was used to evaluate psychometric properties of the SCS and SCS-SF with the sample of 743 respondents randomly divided into two equal subsamples (A and B) to replicate the results for the purpose of robustness. Results Initially, there were no misfitting items but the local dependency between various items affected Rasch model fit. This issue was resolved by combining locally dependent items into four super-items resulting in the best fit to the Rasch model of both SCS and SCS-SF, with evidence of unidimensionality and an excellent sample targeting. Although both scale versions had strong reliability satisfactory for individual and group assessment, the original SCS demonstrated superior psychometric properties reflected by higher reliability indicated by Person Separation Index (PSI) of 0.90 compared to the SCS-SF (PSI = 0.85). These analyses were replicated with the sample B for both scale versions, resulting in equally good fit. This permitted generating ordinal-to-interval conversion tables based on Rasch model estimates. Conclusions The current study supported the reliability and internal validity of both the SCS and SCS-SF. Accuracy of these assessment instruments can be further improved by using the ordinal-to-interval conversion tables published here.

Beliefs About Self-Compassion: Implications for Coping and Self-Improvement

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2020

Self-compassion—treating oneself with care and understanding during difficult times—promotes adaptive coping and self-improvement. Nonetheless, many people are not self-compassionate. We examined a key barrier people face to treating themselves self-compassionately: their negative beliefs about self-compassion (i.e., that it leads to complacency, indulgence, or irresponsibility). Across three studies, the more people held these negative beliefs, the less self-compassionately they reported responding to a real-world event (Study 2) and hypothetical emotional challenges (Studies 1 and 3). Self-compassionate responding, in turn, predicted adaptive coping strategies and intentions for self-improvement. Experimentally inducing people to hold positive, as opposed to negative, beliefs about self-compassion predicted self-compassionate responding 5 to 7 days later (Study 3). By recognizing and targeting peoples’ beliefs, our findings highlight the importance of reducing such beliefs that are barriers to practicing self-compassion, as a means to improve the way people respond to difficult times.

Compassion for Oneself and Others Protects the Mental Health of First Responders

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2020
Mindfulness

Objectives First responders are at elevated risk for psychological distress from frequent exposure to potentially traumatic events. Self-compassion may buffer against the negative impact of these stressors, and the potential emotional challenges of having high levels of compassion for others. However, little is known about the psychological impact of compassion in first responders. We examined how self-compassion, compassionate love for others, and service role interacted to predict mental health in a diverse group of first responders. Methods First responders (N = 171) with both traditional and emotional support roles completed an online survey including measures of self-compassion, compassionate love, psychological distress, post-traumatic stress, secondary traumatic stress, burnout, resilience, compassion satisfaction, and life satisfaction. Results Greater self-compassion and compassionate love both independently predicted less depersonalization (|β|s ≥ .18, ps < .01). Greater self-compassion predicted less general psychological distress, post-traumatic stress, secondary traumatic stress, and emotional exhaustion, as well as greater resilience and life satisfaction (|β|s ≥ .35, ps < .001). Greater compassionate love predicted greater personal accomplishment and compassion satisfaction for all first responders (|β|s ≥ .30, ps < .001); for traditional first responders only, greater self-compassion predicted greater personal accomplishment and compassion satisfaction (role x self-compassion; |β|s ≥ .16, ps < .05). Emotional support first responders reported less emotional exhaustion and greater resilience than traditional first responders (|β|s ≥ .21, ps < .05). Conclusions Self-compassion and compassionate love each play important roles in promoting mental health among first responders. Programs designed to increase compassion could be beneficial in this population.

The Relationship Between Physical Activity and Self-Compassion: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives According to the mental health service recommendations from WHO, self-care is the basis for tackling psychological concerns. Although self-esteem has been a symbolic self-driven psychological factor that could generate significant positive well-being and associated with physical activity (PA), self-esteem’s negative effects have been criticized by the advocation of self-compassion (SC). Therefore, with both PA and SC have been found to be effective in achieving positive psychological health, they are expected to show a relationship to cope with people’s mental health problems.Methods To fully study the relationship, a concrete systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to review the relationship between PA and SC. The meta-analysis outcome was obtained by the pooled correlation coefficient using the random effects model, and meta-regression with mixed-effect models were used to determine the moderate effects.ResultsA total of 25 studies, with n = 5622 samples, were included. Ten studies examined the association between PA and SC; five studies examined the association between PA regulation and SC; and six RCT studies and four single group repeated measure studies examined the effect of PA on SC. The random effects model demonstrated a significant effect size on the overall relationship between PA and SC (r = 0.26), with significant heterogeneity. Subgroup analysis showed the significant effect sizes on four types of relationship, with r = 0.19, r = 0.273 and r = 0.34, r = 0.273, respectively. All potential sources of heterogeneity, including age, gender, study design and risk of bias, showed no moderating effect on the relationship.Conclusion The relationship between PA and SC was significant while investigating the effect of non-mind-and-body interventions and constructing a mechanism of PA and SC can be done as future implications.

Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) with Veterans: a Program Evaluation

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives This pilot study explores the impact of Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) in veterans. Self-compassion, the capacity to hold one’s suffering with kindness and a wish to alleviate it, is associated with improvements in well-being. Veterans have more medical conditions than non-veterans and higher prevalence rates of severe pain. Acceptability of the intervention with veterans is assessed along with the impact of MSC on the physical, mental, and social health of the participants. Methods A racially diverse, predominantly male group of veterans (n = 80) were assessed pre- and post-MSC group with the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) to evaluate physical, mental, and social health. Measures of self-compassion, happiness, self-report medication usage, and a global assessment of improvement measure were also included. Qualitative responses to the MSC program were also solicited and reviewed. Results Engagement with MSC was high (74% completion rate) and 96% of treatment completers rated their participation in the intervention as positive. Completers demonstrated small to medium effect size increases in self-compassion, happiness, and social role satisfaction, 95% CIs (− 6.13, − 2.65), (− 2.62, − 1.06), and (− 4.28, − 1.05), and decreases in depression, anxiety, fatigue, and pain interference, 95% CIs (0.44, 4.13), (0.57, 4.84), (0.43, 3.71), and (0.13, 2.70). In exploratory analyses related to pain, veterans taking pain medication reported a significant decrease in use (χ²(2, N = 47) = 24.30, p < .001). Conclusions These results are suggestive of the positive effects of the MSC intervention to veterans, but await a randomized controlled trial to establish its effectiveness in this population.

The Development and Validation of the State Self-Compassion Scale (Long- and Short Form)

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives The purpose of this research was to create two state measures of self-compassion based on the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS): an 18-item State Self-Compassion Scale-Long form (SSCS-L) that could be used to measure the six components of self-compassion, and a six-item State Self-Compassion Scale-Short form (SSCS-S) that could be used as a measure of global state self-compassion.Methods Study 1 (N = 588) used a community sample to select items for the SSCS-L and SSCS-S. Confirmatory Factor Analyses, Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling (ESEM), and bifactor modeling were used to analyze the factor structure of the SSCS-L and SSCS-S. Predictive validity was assessed by examining associations with positive and negative affect. Study 2 (N = 411) used a student sample to examine the psychometric properties of the SSCS-L and SSCS-S after a self-compassion mindstate induction (SCMI) to determine if its factor structure would remain unchanged after manipulation. Study 3 (N = 139) examined the psychometric properties of the SSCS-S alone.ResultsThe SSCS-L had good psychometric properties and SSCS-S was also adequate. A bifactor-ESEM representation (with one global factor and six components) was supported for the SSCS-L, and a single factor was supported for the SSCS-S. Both scales were reliable. Psychometric properties were unchanged after the experimental manipulation of self-compassion. A total state self-compassion score and subscale scores were associated with positive and negative affect in the expected directions.Conclusions The SSCS-L and SSCS-S appear to be valid measures of state self-compassion.

Is Self-compassion Associated with Sleep Quality? A Meta-analysis

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2021
Mindfulness

Objectives Prior research has found that self-compassion is associated with a range of health and well-being outcomes, but the specific association between self-compassion and sleep quality remains poorly understood. The purpose of this study is to respond to this issue through conducting a meta-analysis to quantify the relationship between self-compassion and sleep quality. Methods Systematic literature searches were conducted using the PsychInfo, Embase and Medline electronic databases to identify studies reporting on the relationship between self-compassion and sleep quality. Random effects meta-analysis was used to synthesise results. Results Seventeen independent studies from 15 publications met criteria for inclusion in this review. All studies included self-reported sleep quality measures. No study reported objective measurements of sleep quality. Meta-analysis revealed evidence of a significant association whereby those with higher self-compassion reported fewer sleep problems r = − 0.32, 95%CI [− .36, − .28]. In a subgroup (n = 6) of studies that delineated the positively and negatively worded items of the self-compassion scale (termed positive self-compassion and self-coldness, respectively), self-coldness was more strongly associated with poor sleep quality r = 0.36, 95%CI [.18, .52] than positive self-compassion r = − 0.15, 95%CI [− .24, − .05]. Conclusions Our meta-analysis found that self-compassion is associated with self-reported sleep quality. Future research is needed to investigate directions of causality and to consider if self-compassion-based interventions might be effective in improving sleep quality.

Testing the Indirect Effect of Type 1 Diabetes on Life Satisfaction Through Self-Compassion and Self-Coldness

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2020
Mindfulness

Objectives Diabetes is a chronic disease that markedly affects the daily life of individuals and lowers subjective well-being. Self-compassion, or treating oneself with kindness and acceptance during challenging circumstances, may improve subjective well-being among people with diabetes. In the current study, we explored the relationships between duration of diabetes, positive and negative components of self-compassion (i.e., self-compassion and self-coldness), and life satisfaction. Methods The sample consisted of 112 persons with type 1 diabetes. A Self-Compassion Scale and Satisfaction with Life Scale were used. Results A parallel multiple mediation model revealed that diabetes duration was related to lower self-coldness but not to self-compassion. Both self-coldness and self-compassion strongly correlated with life satisfaction. Diabetes duration demonstrated a significant indirect effect on life satisfaction through self-coldness (b = 0.08, 95% CI [0.01, 0.16]), but not through self-compassion (b = 0.00, 95% CI [− 0.06, 0.06]). Conclusions The study suggests the need to examine the positive and negative components of the Self-Compassion Scale separately when studying well-being of persons with type 1 diabetes, as well as to prepare tailored self-compassion and self-coldness interventions that can be adjusted for people with varying diabetes durations.

Is Self-Compassion Universal? Support for the Measurement Invariance of the Self-Compassion Scale Across Populations

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2021
ASSESSMENT

The Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) is a widely used measure to assess the trait of self-compassion, and, so far, it has been implicitly assumed that it functions the same way across different groups. This assumption needs to be explicitly tested to ascertain that no measurement biases exist. To address this issue, the present study sought to systematically examine the generalizability of the bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling operationalization of the SCS via tests of measurement invariance across a wide range of populations, varying according to features such as student or community status, gender, age, and language. Secondary data were used for this purpose and included a total of 18 samples and 12 different languages (N = 10,997). Multigroup analyses revealed evidence for the configural, weak, strong, strict, and latent variance–covariance of the bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling operationalization of the SCS across different groups. These findings suggest that the SCS provides an assessment of self-compassion that is psychometrically equivalent across groups. However, findings comparing latent mean invariance found that levels of self-compassion differed across groups.

The Process of Science: A Critical Evaluation of more than 15 Years of Research on Self-Compassion with the Self-Compassion Scale

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2020
Mindfulness

Objectives Falsification is regarded as a cornerstone of science. Anomalous data—even when highly credible—do not always lead to an adjustment of theory. In this paper, we discuss reasons for why current theories are not modified despite a corpus of work falsifying (parts of) the theory, using the case of self-compassion as an example. During more than 15 years, this psychological construct has been heralded as a protective factor against stress and emotional adversity.MethodsA search in the Web of Science database using [SELF-COMPASSION in title] as the search term was conducted and found empirical papers were critically evaluated.ResultsGood evidence abounds indicating that the theoretical definition of self-compassion is limited and that as a consequence its proper assessment with the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) is obscured as the measure is contaminated by psychopathological characteristics. Surprisingly, few researchers take these critical notes into account when conducting and reporting new studies on this topic. We argue that this might be due to all kinds of (conscious and unconscious) tendencies and cognitive biases of researchers and clinicians.Conclusion Research lines are not always guided by solid data but strongly determined by social factors. We close by providing a recommendation for researchers regarding the assessment of self-compassion including the continued use of the SCS.

Development and Validation of the Self-Compassion Scale for Youth

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2020
J PERS ASSESS

We present a series of studies on the development and validation of the Self-Compassion Scale - Youth version (SCS-Y), which is intended for use with early adolescents in middle school. Study 1 (N = 279, Mage = 12.17) describes the selection of 17 items out of a pool of 36 potential items, with three items each representing the subscales of self-kindness, mindfulness, common humanity, self-judgment, isolation, and two items representing over-identification. Using state-of-the-art psychometric analyses ideal for examining multidimensional constructs like self-compassion - bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling (bifactor-ESEM) - findings supported the use of a general self-compassion score and six subscale scores. Study 2 cross-validated the factor structure of the SCS-Y with a second sample of youths (N = 402, Mage = 12.43). Study 3 found support for the test-retest reliability of the SCS-Y (N = 102, Mage = 12.52). Study 4 (N = 212, Mage = 12.18) established construct validity for the SCS-Y by demonstrating that SCS-Y scores were significantly associated with mindfulness, happiness, life-satisfaction, depression, resilience, and achievement goal orientation in expected directions. Overall, findings suggest that the SCS-Y is a reliable and valid measure of self-compassion for use with youths.

Self-Compassion in Clinical Samples: A Systematic Literature Review

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2020

Self-compassion, broadly, means to treat oneself kindly in times of need, same as one would do with a dear friend (Neff, 2003b). This systematic re-view focuses on self-compassion as is found in clinical samples. It specifically reviews 28 relevant studies to find out if people belonging in what is called “clinical samples” have lower levels of self-compassion than those of non-clinical samples in the first place and if this is a crucial factor for the ap-pearance of psychopathological symptoms (i.e. anxiety disorders, bipolar dis-order, borderline personality disorder, PTSD, depression, schizophrenia etc.), or it is the other way around. Even though most studies tend to agree that low self-compassion and psychopathology are present in clinical samples, no study until now can prove a clause for causality, as most studies were of a cross-sectional design and had a great heterogeneity concerning both mental health issues involved and ages/genders. Future studies could use additional mediators to check out how low self-compassion and mental health are con-nected. Another question to be asked is if self-compassion is equally impor-tant for one’s recovery as it is for the prevention of appearance of mental illness. The systematic review highlights issues from the current evidence that may be used for further research.

Self-Compassion and Time Perception of Past Negative Events

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2020
Mindfulness

Objectives This study examined relationships among self-compassion, subjective distance, and time perception related to past negative events. Self-compassion involves a broad, mindful understanding of suffering without getting entangled in suffering. Therefore, self-compassion might enable people to feel subjectively distant from past adverse events and help them develop adaptive emotional reactions and time perception (i.e., meaning-making about time) concerning the events. Methods Two hundred eighty-two participants were randomly assigned to a negative (n = 139) or a positive (n = 143) event condition. After completing measures of self-compassion and self-esteem, they recalled either a negative or a positive event and estimated how far away they subjectively felt from that event. They also indicated the elapsed time from the event and responded to items assessing their emotional reactions and meaning-making about time. Results Self-compassion was associated with greater subjective distance from negative events, r = −.23, p = .005. Moreover, greater subjective distance mediated the relations of self-compassion to lower negative emotional reactions, B = − 0.147, 95% CI [− 0.292, − 0.034], and lower tendency to think that time was wasted on negative events, B = − 0.053, 95% CI [− 0.146, − 0.008]. Importantly, self-compassion was not related to subjective distance from positive events, r = .11, p = .182. Conclusions Results imply that people with high self-compassion would likely feel subjectively distant from past adverse events, which might help prevent negative meaning-making about time and negative emotional reactions concerning the events.

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade: Self-Compassion Increases Adaptive Beliefs About Failure

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2020

Two studies were conducted to examine how self-compassion relates to beliefs about failure. Study 1 (N = 252) showed that, after controlling for self-esteem, trait self-compassion correlated positively with the belief that failures are learning opportunities and part of life, and negatively with the belief that failures are aversive and something that must be avoided. In Study 2, participants (N = 124) first recalled their weaknesses, then wrote either (a) a compassionate message toward themselves (self-compassion condition), (b) a description of their strengths (self-reflection condition), or (c) a list of Japanese prefectures (control condition), and completed measures of state self-compassion and beliefs about failure. Self-compassion manipulation increased positive responses to the self (comprising self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness components of the Self-Compassion Scale) relative to control, which in turn, predicted a stronger belief that failures are learning opportunities. Self-reflection manipulation also predicted this adaptive belief by increasing the positive responses relative to control and, more importantly, it also increased negative responses to the self (comprising self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification components of the Self-Compassion Scale), which, in turn, predicted the beliefs that failures are aversive and must be avoided. In sum, this research confirms that people high in self-compassion hold adaptive beliefs about failures; it also suggests that one could promote adaptive beliefs by increasing the positive responses to the self and decrease maladaptive beliefs by decreasing the negative responses to the self.

The Differential Effects Fallacy in the Study of Self-compassion: Misunderstanding the Nature of Bipolar Continuums

Article

Jan 2022

Kristin D. Neff

This brief commentary highlights the faulty reasoning underlying claims that selfcompassion should not be conceptualized or measured as a unitary construct because compassionate self-responding (CS) and uncompassionate self-responding (UCS) are differential predictors of psychological outcomes. The Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) is a well-validated measure that has been used in thousands of studies on selfcompassion.Self-compassion forms a bipolar continuum ranging from UCS (selfjudgment, isolation, and over-identification) to CS (self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness), so that higher SCS scores represent increased CS and reduced UCS. Several scholars have argued that because CS and UCS display different strengths of association with various psychological outcomes, that CS and UCS should be examined separately and a total SCS score is invalid. This conclusion is assumed to be self-evident. However, there is no known logical, scientific or psychometric principle that supports the view that opposite ends of a bipolar continuum must have the same strength of association with outcomes in order to operate as a unitary construct. In fact, it is common for opposite ends of a continuum to be differential predictors of outcomes (e.g., coldness is a stronger predictor of frostbite than warmth).Unfortunately, this unexamined assumption has spread widely in the field of selfcompassion research, setting the field back and muddying the waters for researchers.This commentary sheds light on this false premise in the hope of clearing up confusion.

Reductions in experiential avoidance explain changes in anxiety, depression and well‐being after a mindfulness and self‐compassion (MSC) training

Article

Dec 2021

Objective: The mindfulness and self-compassion (MSC) protocol has shown efficacy in reducing mental illness symptoms and increasing well-being. However, little is known on how the positive outcomes are produced. This study explores how reductions in experiential avoidance following MSC training may explain changes in the participants' levels of anxiety, depression, and well-being. Methods: The 8-week protocol-based MSC training was delivered to 50 participants, and pre- to post- intervention changes in anxiety, depression, and well-being were measured. A series of mediation models were conducted, with changes in self-compassion as predictor, changes in experiential avoidance as mediator, and changes in mental health and well-being as outcome variables. Point estimates and bootstrap-corrected 95% confidence intervals were calculated to analyse indirect effects through experiential avoidance, by means of structural equation modeling (SEM). Results: Following MSC training, participants increased their levels of self-compassion, reduced experiential avoidance, and enhanced mental health (i.e., anxiety and depression symptoms) and well-being scores. Increases in self-compassion were associated with decreases in experiential avoidance, which in turn were connected with changes in anxiety, depression, and well-being from pre- to post-training. The indirect path through changes in experiential avoidance represented moderate to large proportions of the total effects of self-compassion change-scores on anxiety, depression, and well-being change-scores. Conclusions: Reducing experiential avoidance and increasing psychological flexibility may be a key effect of MSC training linked to improvements of the participants' mental health and well-being scores. Self-compassion practices could exert effects on anxiety, depression and well-being mainly through promoting reductions in experiential avoidance.

Protection versus risk? The relative roles of compassionate and uncompassionate self-responding for eating disorder behaviors

Article

Dec 2021
Eat Behav

Research demonstrates the protective role of self-compassion for eating disorder symptoms. However, studies investigating self-compassion most often use the Self-Compassion Scale, which aggregates the distinct but related constructs of compassionate and uncompassionate self-responding. This study examined differential associations of compassionate and uncompassionate self-responding with positive and negative affect and with a range of eating disorder behaviors (i.e., binge eating, purging, dietary restriction, and excessive exercise). Participants were 547 undergraduate students (59% women, Mage = 20.49, SDage = 1.83) who completed measures of self-compassion, trait affect, and eating disorder behaviors. Compassionate and uncompassionate self-responding were moderately negatively correlated (rs = −0.41 and −0.33, among women and men, respectively). Compassionate self-responding was more strongly related to positive affect, and uncompassionate self-responding was more strongly related to negative affect. Among women, uncompassionate self-responding was related to all eating disorder behaviors controlling for compassionate self-responding, whereas compassionate self-responding was not uniquely related to any eating disorder behavior. Among men, a similar pattern emerged, except that only compassionate self-responding related uniquely to excessive exercise. Results are consistent with studies showing that the presence of uncompassionate self-responding might outweigh the absence of compassionate self-responding in explaining psychopathology. Findings highlight the potential importance of primarily targeting uncompassionate self-responding in eating disorder interventions.

A Systematic Review of Self-Compassion in Chronic Pain: From Correlation to Efficacy

Article

Apr 2021

Chronic pain (CP) is a common condition affecting millions of people worldwide. Compassion-related interventions are proving to be advantageous in CP, and self-compassion (SC) is hypothesized to be related with pain regulation physiological processes, as well as with psychological benefits in CP. We aimed to review scientific literature on: 1) Compassion-based psychological interventions and their changes in pain outcomes; and 2) associations between SC and pain-related outcomes. We performed a systematic research in four electronic databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO and the Cochrane Library from inception until April 2020. In Question 1, we included studies involving adult patients with CP who participated in compassion-based psychological interventions. In Question 2, we included studies that examined the associations between SC and pain outcomes in adults with CP. We identified 16 studies. For Question 1, we included seven studies focused on different compassion-based interventions that assessed at least one pain outcome, in a total of 253 participants with CP associated with multiple conditions. For Question 2, we included nine studies, in a total of 1,430 participants, with eight different pain outcomes: Intensity, acceptance, catastrophizing, self-efficacy, disability, distress, pain related coping and anxiety. Considering the high heterogeneity between studies and the poor-quality assessment, we could not draw definitive conclusions on the efficacy of compassion-based interventions nor on the association between SC and pain outcomes. Studies are further discussed in detail. This review can be a starting point for large-scale and high-quality trials in this area as it provides an organized overview of the current literature on this topic.

Meta-analytic review on the differential effects of self-compassion components on well-being and psychological distress: The moderating role of dialecticism on self-compassion

Article

Feb 2021
CLIN PSYCHOL REV

Although self-compassion has been extensively studied in the recent decades, the representation of self-compassion as a unitary measure or the presence of self-warmth (i.e., presence of the positive components: self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness) and self-coldness (i.e., presence of the negative components: self-judgment, isolation, and mindfulness) remains controversial. Moreover, the differential effects of the six components of self-compassion on mental well-being and psychological distress have not been systematically investigated. To synthesize the differential effects of the six components of self-compassion and to examine how people in different cultures may associate the positive and negative components of self-compassion differentially, the present meta-analysis synthesized 183 effect sizes across 27 cultures. Results showed that the negative components of self-compassion (rs = 0.44 to 0.45) showed greater effect sizes with psychological distress than the positive counterparts (rs = −0.17 to −0.29) whereas the positive components of SCS (rs = 0.27 to.39) showed greater effect sizes with mental well-being than the negative counterparts (rs = −0.29 to −0.36), with the exception of common humanity and isolation (r = 0.29 and − 0.36). Cultural orientation of dialecticism moderated the association between the positive and the negative components of self-compassion, with dialectical cultures showing lower associations between the two opposing components. Findings have implications on the design and implementation of self-compassion interventions cross-culturally.

Depressive symptoms among patients with lung cancer: Elucidating the roles of shame, guilt, and self-compassion

Article

Jan 2021
J HEALTH PSYCHOL

The link between smoking and lung cancer predisposes patients to feeling shame and guilt, which increases risk for depression. To test the hypothesis shame would have a stronger association with depressive symptoms than guilt, a hierarchical regression was conducted. Three regressions were run to examine the associations of self-compassion with shame, guilt, and depressive symptoms. The best model to explain depressive symptoms included shame, but not guilt. Greater self-compassion was associated with less shame and fewer depressive symptoms, but not guilt. Results point to interventions targeting shame via enhancing self-compassion among patients with lung cancer and histories of smoking.

Self-compassion helps people forgive transgressors: Cognitive pathways of interpersonal transgressions

Article

Dec 2020

This study examined the psychological processes through which self-compassion relates to forgiveness of interpersonal transgressors. Specifically, this study focused on the mediating roles of rumination about interpersonal transgressors and subjective temporal distance from interpersonal transgressions. After completing a measure of self-compassion, participants recalled a time when they were hurt by others. Then, they responded to measures including subjective temporal distance, rumination, and forgiveness. A path model showed that self-compassion was associated with greater subjective temporal distance, lower revenge, and lower avoidance through lower rumination. In addition, self-compassion positively predicted benevolence. Results implied that people with high self-compassion may be less likely to ruminate, which may help them feel greater temporal distance from past interpersonal transgressions and forgive transgressors.

Beyond trait models of self-criticism and self-compassion: Variability over domains and the search for signatures

Article

Feb 2021
PERS INDIV DIFFER

Research on risk and resilience variables such as self-criticism and self-compassion typically assumes that they are broad traits reflecting highly cross-situationally consistent dispositions. However, contemporary personality science conceptualizes contextual variability as a universal feature of personality characteristics, complementary to but not inconsistent with central tendencies, or traits (Fleeson & Jayawickreme 2015; Moskowitz & Fournier 2015). We adopted the person × situation interaction model of personality, distinguishing person differences in mean levels, normative effects of situations, and person × situation interactions, termed signatures. However, rather than sampling external situations, we modified measures of self-criticism, self-reassurance, and self-compassion to assess them in eight domains of the self. Study 1 estimated person, domain, and person × domain variance components in four young adult samples. Differences between persons (traits) accounted for considerable variance, ranging from 29% (self-compassion) to 46.5% (self-reassurance), and domain differences accounted for relatively small variance components. Signatures accounted for substantial additional variance, ranging from 13.7% (self-compassion) to 26% (self-criticism). In Study 2, multilevel modeling demonstrated that person, domain, and signatures were each significantly related to domain-specific negative and positive affect. These findings highlight the importance of expanding risk and resilience studies beyond traits to include normative domain effects and person-specific signatures.

Self-compassion and life-satisfaction among Chinese self-quarantined residents during COVID-19 pandemic: A moderated mediation model of positive coping and gender

Article

Oct 2020
PERS INDIV DIFFER

Concern for the psychological health of people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic is necessary. Previous studies suggested that self-compassion contributes to life-satisfaction. However, little is known about the mechanism underlying this relation. This study investigated the relationship between self-compassion and life-satisfaction among Chinese self-quarantined residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, we examined the mediating effect of positive coping and the moderating role of gender in this relation. Participants consist of 337 self-quarantined residents (129 men, 208 women) from a community in China, who completed measures of demographic information, Self-Compassion Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire. The results revealed that self-compassion was positively linked with life-satisfaction. Moreover, positive coping partially mediated the relationship between self-compassion and life-satisfaction for males and not females. In the female group, self-compassion was positively linked with positive coping and life-satisfaction; however, positive coping and life-satisfaction were not significantly linked. These findings indicated that intervention focus on self-compassion could increase life-satisfaction in self-quarantined people during the COVID-19, and self-compassion may contribute to life-satisfaction via positive coping only in the male.

Compassion Focused Therapy: Distinctive Features

Book

Apr 2010

Paul Gilbert

Caring for others without losing yourself: An adaptation of the Mindful Self-Compassion Program for Healthcare Communities

Article

Jul 2020

Objective Two studies examined the efficacy of the Self‐Compassion for Healthcare Communities (SCHC) program for enhancing wellbeing and reducing burnout among healthcare professionals. Method Study 1 (N = 58) had a quasi‐experimental design and compared wellbeing outcomes for the SCHC group compared to a waitlist control group. Study 2 (N = 23) did not include a control group and examined the effect of SCHC on burnout. Results Study 1 found that SCHC significantly increased self‐compassion and wellbeing. All gains were maintained for three months. Study 2 found that in addition to enhancing wellbeing, SCHC significantly reduced secondary traumatic stress and burnout. Changes in self‐compassion explained gains in other outcomes, and initial levels of self‐compassion moderated outcomes so that those initially low in self‐compassion benefitted more. Conclusions Findings suggest that the SCHC program may be an effective way to increase self‐compassion, enhance wellbeing, and reduce burnout for healthcare professionals.

Self-compassion and attention: self-compassion facilitates disengagement from negative stimuli

Article

Jun 2020

Self-compassion is a healthy way of relating to the self, and helps to mitigate negative emotions during difficult experiences. Through four studies, we explored the influence of induced self-compassion on affect-biased attention (measured using a dot-probe task) among undergraduates after negative aspects of the self were made salient. We manipulated self-compassion through a writing task and compared its effects on the dot-probe task against a control (studies 1 and 2), self-esteem and emotion disclosure (study 3), and happiness condition (study 4). Prior to the self-compassion induction, feelings of inadequacies (studies 1, 3 and 4), or shame (study 2) were first elicited among participants. The self-compassion condition yielded faster negative disengaging relative to all comparison conditions across all studies. Our studies provide strong evidence that self-compassion does have an effect on automatic, antecedental emotional regulation processes, especially negative disengaging, following the experience of inadequacy, and even a more intense feeling of shame.

Self-compassion, adaptive reactions, and health behaviours among adults with prediabetes and diabetes: A scoping review

Article

May 2020

Engaging in health-promoting behaviours has health benefits for people with prediabetes or diabetes. People experience negative affect after diagnoses which can impede self-regulation of health behaviours. Self-compassion, extending care to oneself in difficult times, can mitigate negative affect and promote self-regulation. This scoping review explored the relationship between self-compassion and adaptive affect, self-regulation and engagement in health-promoting/management behaviours among people with prediabetes or diabetes. We conducted a scoping literature search from six databases for studies and conference abstracts. Randomized control trials, cross-sectional, longitudinal, observational and qualitative designs focused on self-compassion were included. Eligible studies included adults with diabetes (prediabetes, type 1, type 2 and gestational), measured self-compassion using a validated self-compassion scale (quantitative) or included the 3 components (qualitative) and investigated: negative affect, health promoting/management behaviours, and/or self-regulation. After de-duplication, 5338 quantitative and 953 qualitative abstracts, and 18 conference proceedings were screened leaving 35 articles. Full-text screening retained 11 eligible studies (6 cross-sectional, 2 randomized control trials, 2 longitudinal, 1 qualitative). Higher self-compassion associated with decreased negative affect in nine studies and positively associated with well-being in one cross-sectional study. Self-compassion led to decreased negative affect and improved blood glucose in two interventions. Five studies found positive associations between self-compassion and health-promoting/management behaviours. One qualitative study found self-compassion to benefit affective reactions, health-promoting behaviours and self-regulation. This review shows that self-compassion is linked to adaptive behavioural and affective responding among people with prediabetes and diabetes, as well as the need for more research on self-compassion and self-regulation in these populations.

Is self-compassion relevant to the pathology and treatment of eating and body image concerns? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Article

Apr 2020
CLIN PSYCHOL REV

Eating disorders are severe mental health conditions, with substantial consequences for health and quality of life. Such disorders are strongly associated with body image concerns. It is important to consider treatments that might enhance our ability to treat such cases. Recently, there has been a growing body of research on self-compassion in relation to such problems. However, we are not yet clear about the extent of such effects, given the range of studies and methodologies used. Therefore, a systematic literature review was carried out using four key databases. Meta-analysis was used to reach conclusions about the size of the effects and moderators. Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted with 59 studies. Higher self-compassion was associated with lower eating pathology, reduced body image concerns, and greater positive body image, with medium to strong effect sizes (respectively, r = −0.34, r = −0.45, r = 0.52). Furthermore, self-compassion interventions for eating pathology and body image were effective, and superior to control groups (respectively, g = 0.58, g = 0.39). These findings support the role of self-compassion in understanding and addressing eating and body image concerns. Self-compassion appears to be an adaptive emotion regulation strategy in eating disorders and body image.

Compassion Focused Therapy: a systematic review of its effectiveness and acceptability in clinical populations

Article

Mar 2020

Introduction Compassion focused therapy (CFT) is an increasingly popular therapeutic modality. Its holistic and integrative approach to universal human suffering means that it is well-placed as a transdiagnostic therapy. Research into its effectiveness and acceptability has increased over the previous 10 years as the therapy has evolved, and to help consider its status as an evidence-based therapy research concerning its treatment outcomes needs evaluating. Areas covered This paper reviews research investigating the effectiveness of CFT in clinical populations. Expert opinion CFT shows promise for a range of mental health problems, especially when delivered in a group format over at least 12 hours. This is important for funding bodies and commissioning groups to consider as they allocate healthcare resources in light of current evidence-based practice. CFT is demonstrably well accepted by clients and clinicians and there is now a clear need for an updated, universally deployed, standard manual to direct future research. This will be critical in enabling widespread implementation and further adoption into mainstream clinical practice, will address the lack of standardization in current research and pave the way for further randomized control trials aimed at reducing existing methodological limitations.

Self‐Compassion, Trauma and Post‐traumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review

Article

Jan 2020

Self‐compassion has emerged as an important construct in the mental health literature. Although conceptual links between self‐compassion and trauma are apparent, a review has not been completed to examine whether this association is supported by empirical research findings. To systematically summarise knowledge on the association between trauma and/or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and self‐compassion. Searches were conducted in PsycINFO, PubMed, Ovid Medline, Web of Science, Embase and PILOTS databases and papers reporting a direct analysis on the relationship between these constructs were identified. The search yielded 35 studies meeting inclusion criteria. Despite considerable heterogeneity in study design, sample, measurement and trauma type, there was consistent evidence to suggest that increased self‐compassion is associated with less PTSD symptomatology and some evidence to suggest that reduced fear of self‐compassion is associated with less PTSD symptomatology. There was tentative evidence to suggest that interventions based, in part or whole, on a self‐compassion model potentially reduce PTSD symptoms. While findings are positive for the association between increased self‐compassion and reduced PTSD symptoms, the precise mechanism of these protective effects is unknown. Prospective and longitudinal studies would be beneficial in clarifying this. The review also highlighted the variability in what is and should be referred to as trauma exposure, indicating the need for further research to clarify the concept.

Self-Compassion, Physical Health, and Health Behaviour: A Meta-Analysis

Article

Mar 2021

This meta-analysis investigated relationships between self-compassion and 1) physical health and 2) health-promoting behaviour in a large pooled sample (N = 29,588) sourced from 94 peer-reviewed articles. As hypothesised, omnibus analyses revealed positive associations between self-compassion and both physical health (r = .18) and health behaviour (r = .26). Moderation analyses using 290 effects found that both associations varied according to health domain, participant age, intervention duration, and self-compassion measure. Self-compassion predicted outcomes in most health domains, with the strongest effects observed on global physical health, functional immunity, composite health behaviour, sleep, and danger avoidance. It did not predict frailty, maladaptive bodily routines, and substance abuse. Multi-session interventions designed to boost self-compassion predicted increased physical health and health behaviour, thereby supporting causal links between self-compassion and health outcomes. The effects of single-session inductions were non-significant. The mean effect of self-compassion on physical health was non-significant for young participants (12.00 to 19.99) and its effect on health behaviour was weakest among older participants (40.00+). Results support the proposition that self-compassion can promote better physical health. Practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Self-Compassion: Theory, Method, Research, and Intervention

Abstract

No full-text available

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