Self-compassion in nursing students: An integrated review

The aim of this integrative review was to compile existing evidence to develop a broader understanding of what is known about self-compassion in undergraduate nursing students.

It is essential that nursing students develop protective strategies as they prepare to enter the demanding profession of nursing, where mental well-being can be stressed and burnout is prevalent. One proven strategy to mitigate this is self-compassion. Self-compassion can be understood as turning compassion inwards towards oneself.

The review followed Whittemore and Knafl's integrative review framework.

A structured search of 6 databases (CINAHL, ERIC, PsycINFO, Academic Search Complete and SocINDEX) was undertaken and is reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines.

Seventeen sources were included, one qualitative and sixteen quantitative studies. All conceptualized self-compassion with the same definitions, but with a different focus. Overall, evidence supports that undergraduate nursing students exhibit a moderate amount of self-compassion. They also uncovered factors that influence self-compassion (i.e., age, gender, health status) and concepts that are related to self-compassion (i.e., resiliency, optimism, perfectionism). Lastly, studies support that self-compassion ought to be integrated into nursing education.

This review highlights current understandings of self-compassion in nursing students. It supports the importance of integrating it in curricula, identifies which students may need this support sooner and highlights other factors which may also aid in developing self-compassion.