Abstract
The present study investigated whether cultivating self-compassion facilitates disclosure of self-esteem threatening experiences to others, and whether it does so indirectly by reducing shame. Eighty-five female undergraduates recalled an event that threatened their self-esteem and were randomly assigned to write about it in a self-compassionate (n = 29), self-esteem enhancing (n = 30), or non-directive (free writing; n = 26) way. Participants then learned that self-disclosure can decrease distress and were invited to share their event in writing to a stranger. Contrary to the central hypothesis, there was no main effect of condition on self-disclosure; however, post hoc analyses demonstrated that condition interacted with self-esteem threat to predict length and depth of disclosure. For participants whose events were more self-esteem threatening, cultivating either self-compassion or self-esteem promoted deeper disclosures than free writing, and self-compassionate writing alone fostered longer disclosures. For less self-esteem threatening events, free writing promoted deeper and longer disclosures than cultivating self-compassion or self-esteem. Shame was not a significant mediator. Results highlight the potential utility of self-compassion or self-esteem enhancing interventions for facilitating the disclosure of distressing events that threaten self-worth.
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Data Availability
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon request.
Notes
A previously published article on this sample investigated the role of self-compassion in reducing the link between fears of compassion and perceived risks of disclosure (Dupasquier et al. 2018). In contrast, the present study examined the impact of self-compassion on actual disclosure for self-esteem threatening events and the role of a potential mediator (shame).
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Funding
This research was supported by funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (Jessica R. Dupasquier: J. Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship [Doctoral]; Allison C. Kelly: SSHRC Insight Grant # 435-2017-0062; David A. Moscovitch: SSHRC Insight Grant #435-2018-0959).
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Jessica R. Dupasquier, Allison C. Kelly, David A. Moscovitch, and Vanja Vidovic declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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Dupasquier, J.R., Kelly, A.C., Moscovitch, D.A. et al. Cultivating Self-Compassion Promotes Disclosure of Experiences that Threaten Self-Esteem. Cogn Ther Res 44, 108–119 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-019-10050-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-019-10050-x