Self-Compassion As A Potential Mediator Of Shame and Aggression in Youth Offenders

Sara A. Hofmann

Department of Psychology, Eckerd College.

Zoe J. Jeffries

Department of Applied Psychology and Counselor Education, University of Northern Colorado

Abstract:

Prior research has identified a strong link between experiences of shame and aggressive behavior in populations across the lifespan, but the mechanisms of this relationship are unclear. One potential mediator of this relationship is self-compassion, a teachable emotional regulation skill. This study aimed to investigate whether self-compassion served as a mediator between two specific aspects of the shame experience (negative self-evaluation and emotional discomfort) and aggressive behavior in this sample of adolescents. One hundred and fourteen adolescents in the Rocky Mountain region ages 11-18, referred to services from disciplinary agencies, participated in the study. Each completed the Adolescent Shame-Proneness Scale, the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire, the Self-Compassion Scale, and a demographic questionnaire. Bootstrapped mediation analysis revealed that self-compassion served as a significant mediator between both aspects of shame and aggression. Across both models, aspects of shame-proneness significantly predicted aggression in the initial analysis, but the addition of self-compassion as a mediator rendered those relationships non-significant.  These results suggest that self-compassion may be a viable target for intervention with at-risk and legally-involved adolescents exhibiting externalizing symptoms as well as internalizing symptoms.

Keyword:

Shame, Aggression, Self-compassion, Juvenile offender, Adolescent, Externalizing.