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Self-compassion versus global self-esteem: Two different ways of relating to oneself
- Journal of Personality
, 2009
"... ABSTRACT This research examined self-compassion and self-esteem as they relate to various aspects of psychological functioning. Selfcompassion entails treating oneself with kindness, recognizing one’s shared humanity, and being mindful when considering negative aspects of oneself. Study 1 (N 5 2,187 ..."
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ABSTRACT This research examined self-compassion and self-esteem as they relate to various aspects of psychological functioning. Selfcompassion entails treating oneself with kindness, recognizing one’s shared humanity, and being mindful when considering negative aspects of oneself. Study 1 (N 5 2,187) compared self-compassion and global self-esteem as they relate to ego-focused reactivity. It was found that self-compassion predicted more stable feelings of self-worth than self-esteem and was less contingent on particular outcomes. Self-compassion also had a stronger negative association with social comparison, public self-consciousness, selfrumination, anger, and need for cognitive closure. Self-esteem (but not selfcompassion) was positively associated with narcissism. Study 2 (N 5 165) compared global self-esteem and self-compassion with regard to positive mood states. It was found that the two constructs were statistically equivalent predictors of happiness, optimism, and positive affect. Results from these two studies suggest that self-compassion may be a useful alternative to global self-esteem when considering what constitutes a healthy self-stance. The current studies examine psychological functioning as it relates to two distinct ways of thinking and feeling about oneself—self-esteem and self-compassion. Before describing the goals of the current studies, background on the constructs of self-esteem and selfcompassion is provided. Global Self-Esteem Over the years psychologists have offered many different definitions of self-esteem (Swann, Chang-Schneider, & McClarty, 2007) and Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Kristin D. Neff,
Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness
- Emotion
, 2008
"... The need for social connection is a fundamental human motive, and it is increasingly clear that feeling socially connected confers mental and physical health benefits. However, in many cultures, societal changes are leading to growing social distrust and alienation. Can feelings of social connection ..."
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Cited by 35 (3 self)
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The need for social connection is a fundamental human motive, and it is increasingly clear that feeling socially connected confers mental and physical health benefits. However, in many cultures, societal changes are leading to growing social distrust and alienation. Can feelings of social connection and positivity toward others be increased? Is it possible to self-generate these feelings? In this study, the authors used a brief loving-kindness meditation exercise to examine whether social connection could be created toward strangers in a controlled laboratory context. Compared with a closely matched control task, even just a few minutes of loving-kindness meditation increased feelings of social connection and positivity toward novel individuals on both explicit and implicit levels. These results suggest that this easily implemented technique may help to increase positive social emotions and decrease social isolation.
Contemplative/emotion training reduces negative emotional behavior and promotes prosocial responses
- Emotion
, 2012
"... Contemplative practices are believed to alleviate psychological problems, cultivate prosocial be-havior and promote self-awareness. In addition, psychological science has developed tools and models for understanding the mind and promoting well-being. Additional effort is needed to combine frameworks ..."
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Cited by 9 (1 self)
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Contemplative practices are believed to alleviate psychological problems, cultivate prosocial be-havior and promote self-awareness. In addition, psychological science has developed tools and models for understanding the mind and promoting well-being. Additional effort is needed to combine frameworks and techniques from these traditions to improve emotional experience and socioemotional behavior. An 8-week intensive (42 hr) meditation/emotion regulation training intervention was designed by experts in contemplative traditions and emotion science to reduce “destructive enactment of emotions ” and enhance prosocial responses. Participants were 82 healthy female schoolteachers who were randomly assigned to a training group or a wait-list control group, and assessed preassessment, postassessment, and 5 months after training completion. Assessments included self-reports and experimental tasks to capture changes in emotional behavior. The training group reported reduced trait negative affect, rumination, depression, and anxiety, and increased trait positive affect and mindfulness compared to the control group. On a series of behavioral tasks, the
Enhanced response inhibition during intensive meditation training predicts improvements in selfreported adaptive socioemotional functioning
- Emotion
, 2011
"... We examined the impact of training-induced improvements in self-regulation, operationalized in terms of response inhibition, on longitudinal changes in self-reported adaptive socioemotional functioning. Data were collected from participants undergoing 3 months of intensive meditation training in an ..."
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Cited by 6 (2 self)
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We examined the impact of training-induced improvements in self-regulation, operationalized in terms of response inhibition, on longitudinal changes in self-reported adaptive socioemotional functioning. Data were collected from participants undergoing 3 months of intensive meditation training in an isolated retreat setting (Retreat 1) and a wait-list control group that later underwent identical training (Retreat 2). A 32-min response inhibition task (RIT) was designed to assess sustained self-regulatory control. Adaptive functioning (AF) was operationalized as a single latent factor underlying self-report measures of anxious and avoidant attachment, mindfulness, ego resilience, empathy, the five major personality traits (extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience), diffi-culties in emotion regulation, depression, anxiety, and psychological well-being. Participants in Retreat 1 improved in RIT performance and AF over time whereas the controls did not. The control participants later also improved on both dimensions during their own retreat (Retreat 2). These improved levels of RIT performance and AF were sustained in follow-up assessments conducted approximately 5 months after the training. Longitudinal dynamic models with combined data from both retreats showed that improvement in RIT performance during training influenced the change in AF over time, which is consistent with a key claim in the Buddhist literature that enhanced capacity for self-regulation is an important precursor of changes in emotional well-being.
The Implicit Personality Theory of Islam
- Psychology of Religion and Spirituality
"... Almost every traditional personality theorist had something to say about religion, but the topic of how religious beliefs might affect individuals ’ views of human nature remains largely unstudied. All religions, however, contain certain implicit ideas re-garding personality that are likely to impac ..."
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Almost every traditional personality theorist had something to say about religion, but the topic of how religious beliefs might affect individuals ’ views of human nature remains largely unstudied. All religions, however, contain certain implicit ideas re-garding personality that are likely to impact individual behavior. This article draws on Islamic sources to consider what a practicing Muslim might believe about motivation, personality development, the self, the unconscious, psychological adjustment, and the individual and society. In general terms, understanding these beliefs can be useful in the broader study of how cultural issues affect personality. More specifically, understand-ing Islamic beliefs related to personality can assist in planning for the provision of psychological services to Muslims, as well as understanding the psychological per-spectives of Muslims who are not extremists.
Mindfulness: reconnecting the body and mind in geriatric medicine and gerontology
- The Gerontologist
, 2008
"... Derived from Buddhism, mindfulness is a unique approach for understanding human suffering and happiness that has attracted rapidly growing interest among health care professionals. In this article I describe current thinking about the concept of mind-fulness and elaborate on why and how mindfulness- ..."
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Derived from Buddhism, mindfulness is a unique approach for understanding human suffering and happiness that has attracted rapidly growing interest among health care professionals. In this article I describe current thinking about the concept of mind-fulness and elaborate on why and how mindfulness-based interventions have potential within the context of geriatric medicine and gerontology. Upon review-ing definitions and models of the concept, I give attention to the unique role that the body plays in cultivating mindfulness and the advantages that this focus has for older adults because they have aging biological systems and may experience chronic disease, pain, and disability. In the final section I discuss why mindfulness may be particularly useful in promoting physical activity among older adults and how physical activity may be used as a vehicle to promote mindfulness.
Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting Education: Promoting Family Mindfulness During the Perinatal Period
"... Abstract We present the conceptual and empirical foundation and curriculum content of the Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting (MBCP) program and the results of a pilot study of n = 27 pregnant women participating in MBCP during their third trimester of pregnancy. MBCP is a formal adaptation ..."
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Abstract We present the conceptual and empirical foundation and curriculum content of the Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting (MBCP) program and the results of a pilot study of n = 27 pregnant women participating in MBCP during their third trimester of pregnancy. MBCP is a formal adaptation of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program and was developed and refined over the course of 11 years of clinical practice with 59 groups of expectant couples. MBCP is designed to promote family health and well-being through the practice of mindfulness during pregnancy, childbirth, and early parenting. Quantitative results from the current study include statistically significant increases in mindfulness and positive affect, and decreases in pregnancy anxiety, depression, and negative affect from pre-to post-test (p \ .05). Effect sizes for changes in key hypothesized intervention mediators were large (d [ .70), suggesting that MBCP is achieving its intended effects on maternal well-being during pregnancy. Qualitative reports from participants expand upon the quantitative findings, with the majority of participants reporting perceived benefits of using mindfulness practices during the perinatal period and early parenting. Our future research will involve conducting a randomized controlled trial of MBCP to test effects on psychophysiological stress mechanisms and to examine effects on birth outcomes, family relationship quality, and child development outcomes.
Participation: The Happiness Connection∗
"... Participation in decision-making has the potential to contribute to greater happiness. To ex-plore this connection, we examine three areas: the family, the workplace and politics. In each of these areas, happiness research suggests that greater participation should increase happiness, most directly ..."
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Participation in decision-making has the potential to contribute to greater happiness. To ex-plore this connection, we examine three areas: the family, the workplace and politics. In each of these areas, happiness research suggests that greater participation should increase happiness, most directly via the channels of personal relationships and helping others. There is some empirical research suggesting that participation contributes to happiness. It is useful to consider the connec-tions between the three areas. In particular, examination of participation-happiness connections within families and workplaces can provide some insights for promoting a stronger connection at the level of politics.
Symptoms among Adults Living with
"... We prospectively examined the effects of spiritual striving, social support, and acceptance coping on changes in depressive symptoms among adults living with HIV/AIDS. Participants were 180 culturally diverse adults with HIV/AIDS. Participants completed measures of spiritual striving, social support ..."
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We prospectively examined the effects of spiritual striving, social support, and acceptance coping on changes in depressive symptoms among adults living with HIV/AIDS. Participants were 180 culturally diverse adults with HIV/AIDS. Participants completed measures of spiritual striving, social support, coping styles, and depressive symptoms at baseline, three-month follow-up, and six-month follow-up. A path model showed that spiritual striving had direct and indirect inverse effects on changes in depressive symptoms. The relationship between spiritual striving and depressive symptoms was partially mediated by acceptance coping, but not by social support. Results suggest that people living with HIV/AIDS who strive for spiritual growth in the context of their illness experience less negative affect.
Submitted in Partial Completion of the Requirements for Departmental Honors in Psychology
, 2014
"... Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) helps people to manage stress reactivity through contemplative practices such as meditation. The creator of the program, Kabat-Zinn (1994), defines mindfulness as “paying attention in a particular way; on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally ” ..."
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Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) helps people to manage stress reactivity through contemplative practices such as meditation. The creator of the program, Kabat-Zinn (1994), defines mindfulness as “paying attention in a particular way; on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally ” (p. 4). Shapiro et al. (2006) clarified this definition as consisting of three mechanisms of mindfulness. In particular, their mechanism “intention ” captures Kabat-Zinn’s phrase “on purpose. ” Historically, mindfulness practices were intended to cultivate compassion and insight; thus, practitioners ’ intentions need to be included in a psychological model of mindfulness (Shapiro & Schwartz, 2000). In keeping with their approach, this project explored the concept of intentionality as reported by MBSR practitioners. Participants often begin the course expecting to achieve stress relief, psychological change, or some other concrete outcome (Kabat-Zinn, 1990; Santorelli, 1999). During the course, there is often a shift in their
