Abstract
Self-compassion has shown to be beneficial for individuals’ wellbeing; in particular, it has been associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms. The purpose of this study was to further explore the association between self-compassion, as measured by the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS), and depressive symptoms, in a large representative sample of community adults (n = 734, Mean age = 55.7, SD = 15.2). We examined the association of depressive symptoms with the SCS total score, the SCS six subscales (i.e., self-kindness, common humanity, mindfulness, self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification), and the SCS positive and negative items (referred to as self-compassion and self-coldness, respectively). In addition, we explored the predictive ability of self-compassion, self-coldness, and the SCS six subscales on depressive symptoms both cross-sectionally and over a 1-year period of time. Finally, we sought to test the moderating role of self-compassion on the association between self-coldness and depressive symptoms. Results showed that the SCS negative items and subscales were more strongly related to depressive symptoms than the SCS positive items and subscales. Accordingly, self-coldness was a stronger predictor of depressive symptoms, cross-sectionally and over a 1-year timeframe, when compared with self-compassion. Particularly, the feeling of being isolated was shown to be strongly associated with depressive symptoms. We did not find substantial evidence for a moderating role of self-compassion on the association between self-coldness and depressive symptoms. Future research needs to determine the added value of assessing self-coldness and whether or not it is an essential part of self-compassion.
Highlights
For more than a decade, the benefits of self-compassion, the act of treating oneself kindly when experiencing difficulties, have been widely studied
This study explored the association between self-compassion, as measured by the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS), with depressive symptoms in a large representative sample from the Dutch general population
To gain insight on the influence of the SCS’s use on the relationship between self-compassion and depressive symptoms, we presented results for the SCS total score, the SCS six subscales, and the SCS positive and negative items
Summary
For more than a decade, the benefits of self-compassion, the act of treating oneself kindly when experiencing difficulties, have been widely studied. According to Neff (2003a), self-compassion encompasses treating oneself with kindness and understanding when facing suffering, seeing one’s failures as part of the human condition rather than feeling isolated, and having a balanced awareness of painful thoughts and emotions. Most of the research on self-compassion has used the total score of the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) (Neff 2003b), a 26-item selfreport questionnaire that was developed based on Neff’s conceptualization. The SCS contains six subscales, three of which measure a compassionate approach to suffering (i.e., self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness) with the other three measuring the opposite, a harsh
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