Tobias Krieger1, Thomas Berger2, Martin Grosse Holtforth3. 1. Institute of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland. Electronic address: tobias.krieger@psy.unibe.ch. 2. Institute of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland. 3. Institute of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Bern University Hospital, Division of Psychosomatic Medicine, Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Previous cross-sectional studies suggest that self-compassion and depressive symptoms are consistently negatively associated. Although it is often implicitly assumed that (a lack of) self-compassion precedes depressive symptoms, so far no study has tested whether (lack of) self-compassion is a cause or a consequence of depressive symptoms, or both. METHOD: To examine such reciprocal effects, we used data of 125 depressed outpatients after a time limited cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy. We assessed self-compassion and depressive symptoms via self-report measures and the presence of a major depressive episode directly after therapy, as well as 6 and 12 months later. RESULTS: Cross-lagged panel analyses indicated that (lack of) self-compassion significantly predicted subsequent depressive symptoms while controlling for autoregressive effects, whereas depressive symptoms did not predict subsequent levels of self-compassion. This was also the case for the relationship between self-compassion and the presence of a major depressive episode. The same patterns also occurred when we separately tested the reciprocal effects for two composite sub-measures of either positive or negative facets of self-compassion. LIMITATIONS: Causality cannot be inferred from our results. Depressive symptoms and self-compassion could still be causally unrelated, and a third variable could account for their negative association. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the notions that (a lack of) self-compassion could serve as a vulnerability factor for depression and that cultivating self-compassion may deserve a focus in depression prevention programs or treatments.
BACKGROUND: Previous cross-sectional studies suggest that self-compassion and depressive symptoms are consistently negatively associated. Although it is often implicitly assumed that (a lack of) self-compassion precedes depressive symptoms, so far no study has tested whether (lack of) self-compassion is a cause or a consequence of depressive symptoms, or both. METHOD: To examine such reciprocal effects, we used data of 125 depressed outpatients after a time limited cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy. We assessed self-compassion and depressive symptoms via self-report measures and the presence of a major depressive episode directly after therapy, as well as 6 and 12 months later. RESULTS: Cross-lagged panel analyses indicated that (lack of) self-compassion significantly predicted subsequent depressive symptoms while controlling for autoregressive effects, whereas depressive symptoms did not predict subsequent levels of self-compassion. This was also the case for the relationship between self-compassion and the presence of a major depressive episode. The same patterns also occurred when we separately tested the reciprocal effects for two composite sub-measures of either positive or negative facets of self-compassion. LIMITATIONS: Causality cannot be inferred from our results. Depressive symptoms and self-compassion could still be causally unrelated, and a third variable could account for their negative association. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the notions that (a lack of) self-compassion could serve as a vulnerability factor for depression and that cultivating self-compassion may deserve a focus in depression prevention programs or treatments.
Authors: Rebecca C Thurston; Megan M Fritz; Yuefang Chang; Emma Barinas Mitchell; Pauline M Maki Journal: Health Psychol Date: 2021-11 Impact factor: 4.267
Authors: Natalie L Marchant; Thorsten Barnhofer; Olga M Klimecki; Géraldine Poisnel; Antoine Lutz; Eider Arenaza-Urquijo; Fabienne Collette; Miranka Wirth; Ann-Katrin Schild; Nina Coll-Padrós; Leslie Reyrolle; Deborah Horney; Pierre Krolak-Salmon; José Luis Molinuevo; Zuzana Walker; Aline Maillard; Eric Frison; Frank Jessen; Gael Chételat Journal: Alzheimers Dement (N Y) Date: 2018-12-14