Self-compassion
In psychology, self-compassion is extending compassion to one's self in instances of perceived inadequacy, failure, or general suffering. American psychologist Kristin Neff has defined self-compassion as being composed of three main elements – self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness.
- Self-kindness: Self-compassion entails being warm towards oneself when encountering pain and personal shortcomings, rather than ignoring them or hurting oneself with self-criticism.
- Common humanity: Self-compassion also involves recognizing that suffering and personal failure is part of the shared human experience rather than isolating.
- Mindfulness: Self-compassion requires taking a balanced approach to one's negative emotions so that feelings are neither suppressed nor exaggerated. Negative thoughts and emotions are observed with openness, so that they are held in mindful awareness. Mindfulness is a non-judgmental, receptive mind state in which individuals observe their thoughts and feelings as they are, without trying to suppress or deny them. Conversely, mindfulness requires that one not be "over-identified" with mental or emotional phenomena, so that one suffers aversive reactions. This latter type of response involves narrowly focusing and ruminating on one's negative emotions.
Self-compassion is different from self-pity, a state of mind or emotional response of a person believing to be a victim and lacking the confidence and competence to cope with an adverse situation.
Research indicates that self-compassionate individuals experience greater psychological health than those who lack self-compassion. For example, self-compassion is positively associated with life satisfaction, wisdom, happiness, optimism, curiosity, learning goals, social connectedness, personal responsibility, and emotional resilience. At the same time, it is associated with a lower tendency for self-criticism, depression, anxiety, rumination, thought suppression, perfectionism, and disordered eating attitudes. Studies show that compassion can also be a useful variable in understanding mental health and resilience.
Self-compassion has different effects than self-esteem, a subjective emotional evaluation of the self. Although psychologists extolled the benefits of self-esteem for many years, recent research has exposed costs associated with the pursuit of high self-esteem, including narcissism, distorted self-perceptions, contingent and/or unstable self-worth, as well as anger and violence toward those who threaten the ego. As self-esteem is often associated with perceived self-worth in externalised domains such as appearance, academics and social approval, it is often unstable and susceptible to negative outcomes. In comparison, it appears that self-compassion offers the same mental health benefits as self-esteem, but with lesser drawbacks such as narcissism, ego-defensive anger, inaccurate self-perceptions, self-worth contingency, or social comparison.
In modern workplace and leadership, self compassion is seen to deliver results in generating greater resilience, adaptability and team cohesion.
Self-Compassion in Contemporary Spirituality
In certain contemporary spiritual and contemplative traditions, self-compassion is described as an important practice for emotional regulation, personal growth, and spiritual development. Advocates of this approach suggest that cultivating kindness toward oneself may support processes associated with spiritual awakening, including increased self-awareness, reduced self-criticism, and an enhanced sense of inner peace.Authors working within integrative psychology and mindfulness-based spiritual frameworks argue that self-compassion may enhance practices such as meditation, intuitive reflection, or contemplative inquiry by promoting a supportive internal environment. This environment may help individuals process difficult emotions, address unresolved personal experiences, and foster "inner healing." Such perspectives maintain that self-acceptance can deepen spiritual engagement, strengthen the mind–body connection, and contribute to emotional resilience within holistic or spiritual growth traditions.
While these views are frequently discussed in spiritual literature and self-help contexts, they represent subjective interpretations rather than empirically validated mechanisms. Academic research continues to examine the role of self-compassion in psychological well-being, emotional regulation, and personal development.
Scales
Much of the research conducted on self-compassion so far has used the Self-Compassion Scale, created by Kristin Neff, which measures the degree to which individuals display self-kindness against self-judgment, common humanity versus isolation, and mindfulness versus over-identification.The Self-Compassion Scale has been translated into different languages. Some of these include a Czech, Dutch, Japanese, Chinese, Turkish and Greek version.
Development
The original sample for which the scale was developed consisted of 68 undergraduate students from a large university in the United States. In this experiment, the participants narrowed down the potential scale items to 71.The next stage of development involved testing the reliability and validity of the scale among a larger group of participants. During this research study, 391 undergraduate students were selected at random to complete the 71 previously narrowed-down scale items. Based on their results, the number of items was reduced to 26. The Self-Compassion Scale has good reliability and validity.
A second study was conducted to look more closely at the difference between self-esteem and self-compassion. This study consisted of 232 randomly selected, undergraduate students. Participants were asked to complete a number of different scales in questionnaire form. They were as follows: The 26-item Self-Compassion Scale, the 10-item Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, the 10-item Self-determination Scale, the 21-item Basic Psychological Needs Scale, and the 40-item Narcissistic Personality Inventory. Based on the findings, Neff reports "that self-compassion and self-esteem were measuring two different psychological phenomena."
A third study was conducted to examine the construct validity. By comparing two different groups of people, researchers would be able to see the different levels of self-compassion. Forty-three Buddhist practitioners completed the Self-Compassion Scale as well as a self-esteem scale. The sample of 232 undergraduate students from the second study was used as the comparison group. As expected by Neff, the Buddhist practitioners had significantly higher self-compassion scores than the students.
Self-compassion development refers to the process of cultivating a kind, understanding, and balanced attitude toward oneself during moments of difficulty, failure, or emotional pain. It is commonly discussed in psychology and mental health research as a skill that can be learned and strengthened over time through intentional practice.
Research in positive psychology identifies self-compassion as consisting of three core components: self-kindness, common humanity, and mindful awareness. Developing self-compassion involves replacing harsh self-criticism with supportive inner dialogue, recognizing that personal struggles are part of shared human experience, and maintaining awareness of thoughts and emotions without over-identifying with them.
Studies suggest that self-compassion development is associated with improved emotional regulation, reduced anxiety and depression, increased resilience, and healthier motivation. Interventions such as mindfulness-based practices, compassion-focused therapy, and reflective exercises have been shown to support the development of self-compassion in both clinical and non-clinical populations.
Self-compassion scale
The long version of the Self-Compassion Scale consists of 26 items. This includes 6 subscales – self-kindness, self-judgement, common humanity, isolation, mindfulness, and over-identification. Neff recommends this scale for ages 14 and up with a minimum 8th grade reading level.Presented on a Likert scale, ranging from 1 to 5, those completing the SCS are able to gain insight on how they respond to themselves during a struggle or challenging time.