Work-Stressors and Depression and Anxiety—A Longitudinal Study of the Moderating Role of Self-Compassion

Abstract

Self-compassion has been defined as being open to one's suffering, not avoiding or disconnecting from it, coupled with the kind and caring motivation to alleviate one's suffering. There is increasing evidence that self-compassion might function as a buffer against the negative mental health effects of experiencing work-stressors. However, while this moderating role of self-compassion has been demonstrated when measures of subjective stress are used, different studies that use measures of more objective potential stressors failed to demonstrate a moderating role of self-compassion. Furthermore, while cross-sectional studies offer increasing support for this moderation effect of self-compassion, few studies have examined this in longitudinal designs which may provide more robust insight into the role of self-compassion on the relation between work stress experiences and symptoms of depression and anxiety. The aims of the current study were to examine whether self-compassion moderates the concurrent and prospective association between a measure of potential work-stressors and depressive and anxious symptomatology. The method consisted of a longitudinal survey study in a sample of 246 military personnel with three measurements, half a year apart from each other. Latent moderated structural equation modelling was conducted to test the potential moderating effect of self-compassion. Self-compassion was shown to significantly moderate the association between work-stressors and depressive and anxiety symptomatology, both cross-sectionally and prospectively after 6 and 12 months. Specifically, the experience of work-stressors was positively associated with symptoms of depression and anxiety when self-compassion was low and this association became weaker when self-compassion was at a medium or high level. The results of the current study suggest that higher levels of work-related stress covary more strongly with symptoms of depression and anxiety over time in personnel with lower levels of self-compassion.