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Exploring Connections Between Self-Compassion, Mindfulness, and Social Anxiety

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Abstract

Objectives

Self-compassion and mindfulness are related but distinct constructs that are thought to influence a variety of mental health outcomes. However, few studies have evaluated these constructs concurrently in the context of mental health. This study examined associations between trait mindfulness, self-compassion, and baseline clinical variables in individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD).

Methods

The study used a cross-sectional design and included 136 men and women with SAD. The Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire and short form of the Self-Compassion Scale were used to assess mindfulness and self-compassion, respectively. Clinical variables included ratings of social anxiety severity, depression, self-esteem, social adjustment, and satisfaction with life.

Results

Bivariate correlations revealed that higher ratings of self-compassion and facets of mindfulness were associated with less severe social anxiety and depressive symptoms, as well as better functioning, self-esteem, and satisfaction with life. Self-compassion was more strongly associated with clinical variables than mindfulness in the regression models. Mediation analysis found that the mindfulness facet Describe mediated the relationship between self-compassion and social anxiety severity. An alternative model showed that self-compassion mediated the relationship between multiple facets of mindfulness and social anxiety severity.

Conclusions

Although causality cannot be discerned from this cross-sectional study, these preliminary findings suggest that individual differences in facets of mindfulness and self-compassion may be associated with social anxiety severity. Mediation analysis highlights the interplay between mindfulness, self-compassion, and severity of social anxiety. Implications for further research are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

Elisa Makadi was supported by a graduate student scholarship from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. We would like to thank Maxine Berthiaume and Sawsane El Amiri for research assistance.

Funding

The clinical trials from which the data for this study are derived were funded by grants from the Ontario Mental Health Foundation and Institut du Savoir Montfort (awarded to Dr. Koszycki).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

    Elisa Makadi & Diana Koszycki

  2. Institut du Savoir Montfort, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

    Diana Koszycki

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  1. Elisa Makadi
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Contributions

EM: conducted the data analysis and prepared an initial draft of the manuscript; DK: designed the clinical trials from which the data from this study are derived, obtained funding, collected the data, and collaborated in writing and editing the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Diana Koszycki.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Research Ethics Board of Montfort Hospital and the University of Ottawa Office of Research Ethics and Integrity and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Makadi, E., Koszycki, D. Exploring Connections Between Self-Compassion, Mindfulness, and Social Anxiety. Mindfulness 11, 480–492 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-019-01270-z

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