Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2025
02:28
Author Spotlight: Self-Assessment Protocol for Predicting Psoriatic Arthritis in Psoriasis Patients
Published on: March 1, 2024
479
How does self-compassion help people adjust to chronic skin conditions? A template analysis study
Elaine N Clarke1,2, Paul Norman2, Andrew R Thompson2,3,4
1Centre for Behavioural Science and Applied Psychology, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, United Kingdom.
Frontiers in Medicine
|October 31, 2022
Summary
Self-compassion aids adjustment to chronic skin conditions by fostering sensitivity to distress and wellbeing. Various strategies, including self-kindness and mindful attention, help manage difficulties, highlighting the multifaceted nature of psychological adjustment.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Dermatology
- Health Psychology
Background:
- Skin conditions significantly impact quality of life.
- Understanding psychological adjustment to chronic skin conditions is crucial.
- Self-compassion is linked to wellbeing and adaptive functioning.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the role of self-compassion in adjusting to chronic skin conditions.
- To understand how self-compassion operates in individuals with skin conditions.
- To identify self-compassion strategies that facilitate adjustment.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative study using template analysis.
- Semi-structured interviews with 10 individuals with high self-compassion and chronic skin conditions.
- Purposive sampling based on high self-compassion scores.
Main Results:
- Foundation themes of sensitivity to distress and care for wellbeing were identified.
- Eleven difficulty-management strategies emerged, including empathy, non-judgment, and self-kindness.
- Self-compassion components facilitated adjustment through various, sometimes automatic, sometimes deliberate, responses.
Conclusions:
- Self-compassion plays a multifaceted role in psychological adjustment to skin conditions.
- Adjustment is not a linear process and involves diverse compassionate responses.
- Further research into compassion-based interventions for skin conditions is recommended.
Related Concept Videos
03:00Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification
5.3K
Social psychologists have documented that feeling good about ourselves and maintaining positive self-esteem is a powerful motivator of human behavior (Tavris & Aronson, 2008). In the United States, members of the predominant culture typically think very highly of themselves and view themselves as good people who are above average on many desirable traits (Ehrlinger, Gilovich, & Ross, 2005). Often, our behavior, attitudes, and beliefs are affected when we experience a threat to our...
5.3K
02:05Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
39.5K
People can go to great lengths to protect their self-image and present themselves in ways that they want others to see them. Sociologist Erving Goffman presented the idea that a person is like an actor on a stage. Calling his theory dramaturgy, Goffman believed that we use “impression management” to present ourselves to others as we hope to be perceived. Each situation is a new scene, and individuals perform different roles depending on who is present (Goffman, 1959). Think about...
39.5K
02:57The Sense of Self: Reflected Self-Appraisal and Social Comparison
50.5K
According to Charles Cooley, we base our image on what we think other people see (Cooley 1902). We imagine how we must appear to others, then react to this speculation. We don certain clothes, prepare our hair in a particular manner, wear makeup, use cologne, and the like—all with the notion that our presentation of ourselves is going to affect how others perceive us. We expect a certain reaction, and, if lucky, we get the one we desire and feel good about it. But more than that, Cooley...
50.5K
02:16Self-Schemas
31.5K
In general, a schema is a mental construct consisting of a cluster or collection of related concepts (Bartlett, 1932). There are many different types of schemata, and they all have one thing in common: schemata are a method of organizing information that allows the brain to work more efficiently. When a schema is activated, the brain makes immediate assumptions about the person or object being observed.
31.5K
01:20Coping Strategies: Emotion Focused
129
Emotion-focused coping refers to a set of strategies aimed at managing the emotional impact of stressors, rather than directly addressing their causes. This approach involves altering one's emotional response to stressful situations to reduce their psychological effects. For example, individuals might talk with a friend or engage in activities like journaling to express their feelings. Such actions can help achieve emotional clarity or release, providing the psychological stability needed...
129
02:45Self-Discrepancy Theory
18.4K
One influential perspective on what motivates people's behavior is detailed in Tory Higgin's self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987). He proposed that people hold disagreeing internal representations of themselves that lead to different emotional states.
18.4K