Abstract
Self-compassion is a relatively recent concept in Western thought, although its existence in Eastern philosophy and more specifically in Buddhist philosophy, is dated centuries ago (Davidson & Harrington, 2002). Self-compassion, as defined by Neff (2003a), concerns a stand of warmth and acceptance towards ourselves in moments of pain or failure. This pain can come either from the external conditions of life, when they are painful, or from the actions of the person, the failures or personal weaknesses (Neff, 2009a). The concept of self-compassion consists of three core elements: kindness and understanding towards the negative aspects of the self, the consideration of the defect or the negative experiences experienced by the individual as part of the overall human experience and consciousness, which means the maintaining of painful thoughts and feelings in a conscious awareness, emotional balance and serenity (Barnard & Curry, 2011. Neff, 2003a). Research data show that self-compassion i ...
Self-compassion is a relatively recent concept in Western thought, although its existence in Eastern philosophy and more specifically in Buddhist philosophy, is dated centuries ago (Davidson & Harrington, 2002). Self-compassion, as defined by Neff (2003a), concerns a stand of warmth and acceptance towards ourselves in moments of pain or failure. This pain can come either from the external conditions of life, when they are painful, or from the actions of the person, the failures or personal weaknesses (Neff, 2009a). The concept of self-compassion consists of three core elements: kindness and understanding towards the negative aspects of the self, the consideration of the defect or the negative experiences experienced by the individual as part of the overall human experience and consciousness, which means the maintaining of painful thoughts and feelings in a conscious awareness, emotional balance and serenity (Barnard & Curry, 2011. Neff, 2003a). Research data show that self-compassion is positively related to many concepts of positive psychology, such as positive feelings (Neff, Rude, & Kirkpatrick, 2007), subjective happiness and life satisfaction (Heffernan, Griffin, McNulty, & Fitzpatrick, 2010 Neff, 2012. Neff & Costigan, 2014. Neff, Rude, & Kirkpatrick, 2007). Overall, the approach of painful situations in a self-compassionate manner seems to facilitate both self-development and relationship with others (Neff, Rude, & Kirkpatrick, 2007). The purpose of the current dissertation is the creation of a self-compassion training program and its implementation in a group context. To achieve this goal three surveys were carried out, which were completed with the writing and publication of three articles in scientific peer-reviewed journals.The first research concerns the control of the psychometric qualities of the Self-Compassion Scale in the Greek population. The purpose of the research was to create a valid and reliable psychometric tool. The results revealed satisfactory psychometric properties of the tool in the Greek population.The second research concerns the creation of a pilot self-compassion training program for individuals. The aim of the program was to explore the ability to teachxivself-compassion, examining also the relation between self-compassion and other aspects of psychological well-being as well as indicators of psychological difficulties. The results of this research have shown that educating people to behave with greater compassion towards themselves, when they are in a difficult situation, has significant benefits to their mental health.The third survey concerns the implementation of the Self-Compassion Program in a group of women victims of domestic violence. The results showed that women’s participation in this particular program strengthened not only self-compassion but also increased at the same time the levels of positive emotions, subjective happiness and mental resilience, while on the other hand reduced the levels of negative emotions and symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress.Overall the results provide clear evidence of the benefits of self-compassion, but also prove that self-compassion can be taught and can be used as a tool for promoting and enhancing the mental health of the individual. Additionally, the implementation of such a program in population groups which are more in need of learning to manage the difficulties of everyday life is of the greatest importance as individuals or groups who are in personal or collective judgment require particular attention and care.Finally, the limitations of the current research will be discussed with the prospect of offering new directions to the field of positive psychology research, illuminating the aspects of self-compassion, both theoretically and practically.
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