This thesis reviews the literature on theoretical cognitive neuroscientific findings linked to self-compassion, emotion regulation and compassion. Further, an empirical study was conducted with the aim to investigate correlational findings of self-compassion in relation to mental health in India. Mental health was measured through positive and negative affect, symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder and depression. The background of the thesis is mainly centred on the emotion regulation strategy cognitive reappraisal and compassion to provide more understanding of the links regarding self-compassion and mental health. The neural underpinnings regarding reappraisal and self-compassion are mostly related to dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, ventral striatum, anterior cingulate cortex, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, insula and amygdala. These regions are involved in functions such as attention, memory, reward, emotion processes and responses. The correlational study involved 91 south Indian university students between the age of 19-24 years. The most significant results indicate a strong negative relationship between self-compassion and negative affect. Self-compassion was moderately positively correlated with positive affect. Furthermore, self-compassion was moderately negatively correlated with symptoms of depression. In addition, a strong positive correlation between negative affect and symptoms of depression was found. A discussion regarding current findings in relation to the neural underpinnings of emotion regulation and self-compassion, limitations of the study as well as directions for future research is provided.

Bakgrund: En genomgång av aktuellt kunskapsläge visar att sjuksköterskor har en risk att utveckla compassion fatiguepå grund av sitt empatiska engagemang gentemot patienterna. Compassion fatigueär då en person som konsekvens av sitt empatiska engagemang gentemot en patient blir emotionellt utmattad. Syfte:Syftet med denna studie är att belysa riskfaktorer för sjuksköterskor att drabbas av compassion fatiguesamt för att undvika detta tillstånd. Metod:En litteraturstudie gjordes med både kvalitativ och kvantitativ forskning. Resultatet analyserades och sammanfattades. Resultat:Resultatet visade att risken att drabbas var störst hos sjuksköterskor inom hemsjukvården, akutsjukvården, hospices sjuksköterskor och de sjuksköterskor som arbetade med kroniskt sjuka barn. Ett flertal strategier och åtgärder pekar på vikten att behålla en professionell distans till patienterna samt säga nej till arbete som ej tillhör ens specifika arbetsområde. Majoriteten av sjuksköterskorna delgav även support som en strategi för återhämtning, både från kollegor men även i form av kurator eller psykolog, speciellt vid traumatiska händelser. Slutsats: Compassion fatigueär ett problem både för sjukvården i stort och för den enskilda sjuksköterskan. Det påverkar både omvårdnaden, arbetssituationen och den enskilda sjuksköterskan negativt. Ett flertal faktorer spelar in i utvecklandet av compassion fatigue, detta gör även att det krävs ett brett urval av möjliga åtgärder för att förhindra det. / Background: A review of the field shows that nurses are at risk to develop compassion fatigueas a result of their empathic engagement with patients. Compassion fatigueis when a person as a consequence of their empathic engagement with patients suffers an emotional exhaustion. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to highlight risk factors in developing compassion fatigueand how to avoid this condition in the nursing profession. Method: A literature review with both qualitative and quantitative research. The result was then analysed and summarized. Result: The results showed that nurses in homecare, acute care, hospice and those working with chronically ill children were at the highest risk for Compassion fatigue.A number of strategies and preventive measures highlight the importance of having a professional distance to the patient as well as saying no to tasks that are not within the nurses specific profession. A majority of nurses stated support as a strategy for recovery, both from colleges as well as counselors or psychologists, especially after traumatic events. Conclusion: Compassion fatigue is a problem both for healthcare in general as well as for nurses themselves. It affects the patient care, the work situation and the nurse negatively. A number of factors contribute in the development of compassion fatigue, because of this a broad selection of possible preventive measures is required,

No description available.

No description available.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The body of literature regarding occupational callings has well established the positive effects of living one’s calling. Emerging research, however, identifies the double-edged sword nature of callings or in other words, the potential negative effects living one’s calling can have in spite of the positive effects. Nevertheless, there is a lack of consensus regarding the mechanisms explaining the negative effects of callings as well as a lack of direction regarding how those living their calling may avoid or mitigate these negative effects. Drawing upon previous literature coupled with the Job Demands-Resources Model, I tested the degree to which called individuals are more susceptible to negative outcomes in the form of citizenship fatigue. I also tested a theoretical model to examine organizational citizenship behavior as the mechanism that accounts for the relationship between living a calling and citizenship fatigue. I additionally examined two moderators of this relationship: self-compassion and leader compassion. Hypotheses were tested using a two-wave survey design with 288 full-time employees. Results have implications for called individuals’ overall health and wellbeing, as well as for leaders and the company climate they foster.

The convergence of empathy and digitalization has become a focal point of exploration in society. As traditional modes of interaction evolve in the face of technological advancements, the interplay between human empathy and the digital world unfolds in intricate ways.  Empathy, which is considered a cornerstone of human connection and relationships in the aspect of social work, is now navigating the digital landscape. The fusion of empathy and digitalization as two forces introduces both opportunities and challenges, shaping the dynamics of relationships and societal structures.  The purpose of this study is to investigate the intersection of empathy and digitalization, examining how they interact and mutually influence each other in practical social work. Six semi-structured interviews were conducted with professionals, consisting of four practitioners and two researchers. The findings reveal both posibillities and challenges associated with digitalization in social work and its impact on the empathy of social workers. Respondents perceive favorable prospects for enhancing empathic abilities through digitalization, citing innovation and efficiency as potential benefits. Simultaneously, they underscore the importance of collaboration in implementing digital tools and the need to critically analyze the how, why, and when of digitalization to enhance, rather than diminish, empathic capabilities.

Psykisk ohälsa hos ungdomar är ett växande problem och tonårstiden är en sårbar period för utveckling av bland annat stress, ångest och depression, tillstånd där skam och självkritik ofta ingår. Vidare har svårigheter att reglera känslor identifierats som en orsak till psykiska problem. Compassionfokuserad terapi (CFT) är en behandlingsform som har tagits fram för att fånga upp patienter som upplever skam och självkritik och metoden har god evidens för en vuxen population. Däremot finns det färre studier där behandlingens utfall undersökts för ungdomar, i synnerhet forskning där ungdomarnas egna erfarenheter av terapin studerats. Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie var att undersöka upplevelser av känslor efter avslutad compassionfokuserad gruppbehandling hos ungdomar med lindrig till måttlig grad av stress, ångest och depression. Tjugosex deltagare, 21 kvinnor, tre män och två icke-binära, i åldersgruppen 15-20 år intervjuades i fokusgrupper, och materialet analyserades med tematisk analys. I analyserna framkom olika beskrivningar av känslor som tolkades i fem teman: Förståelse för sig själv, Förändring, Gruppallians, Upplevelsebaserat och Värna Kroppen. Analysen ledde till slutsatser avseende deltagarnas beskrivningar av känslor som indikerar att olika dimensioner i den compassionfokuserade behandlingen har påverkat deltagarnas förmåga att känna trygghet och medvetandegöra känslor. Möjligheter att skifta perspektiv, få en ökad förståelse för sig själv, känna social tillhörighet, uppleva medveten närvaro och förstå kroppsliga sensationer kan bidra till ökad compassion vilket i sin tur kan påverka förmågan att förstå och reglera känslor. / Mental health issues among adolescents are a growing concern, and adolescence is a vulnerable period for the development of stress, anxiety and depression, conditions which often involve elements of shame and self-criticism. Difficulties with emotion regulation have been identified as a cause of mental health problems. Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) has been developed to help patients who experience shame and self-criticism, and there is significant evidence that supports its efficiency in an adult population. However, only a few studies have investigated treatment outcomes for adolescents, particularly those examining the youths’ own experience of therapy. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of emotions after completing a compassion-focused treatment in a group of adolescents with mild to moderate levels of stress, anxiety and depression. Twenty-six participants, 21 females, three males, and two non-binary individuals, aged 15-20 years were interviewed in focus groups, and the material was analyzed using thematic analysis. In the analysis different descriptions of the participants' emotions emerged, which was interpreted into five themes: Self-Understanding, Change, Group Alliance, Experience-Based, and Care of the Body. The analysis led to conclusions about the participants' descriptions of emotions, which indicate that different dimensions of the compassion-focused treatment have influenced the participants’ ability to feel secure and be aware of their emotional experience. The opportunity to shift perspective, increase self-understanding, feel social belonging, experience mindfulness and understand bodily sensations may contribute to increased compassion and capacity to understand and regulate emotions.

No description available.

Bakgrund: Empatitrötthet uppstår när sjuksköterskor utsätts för utmaningar i vården som påverkar deras arbetsmiljö. Det skapar ett bristande utrymme för sjuksköterskor att ventilera sina känslor kring patientsituationer. Sjuksköterskor påverkas av överbelastning av olika situationer där empati hade en stor påverkan. Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka sjuksköterskors uppfattning av empatitrötthet Metod: Studien har genomförts som en kvalitativ intervjustudie med semistrukturerade intervjuer med 10 legitimerade sjuksköterskor. Resultat: Resultatet delades in i 2 huvudkategorier För trött för att bedriva omvårdnaden och Avsaknad av hanteringsstrategier att förebygga utmattning som sedan delades in i 4 underkategorier. I resultatet framkom det att sjuksköterskor uppgav att den höga belastningen, bristande resurser och utmattning påverkade omvårdnaden patienterna fick. Konklusion: Den kvalitativa studien visar att begreppet empatitrötthet hos sjuksköterskor är något som är aktuellt inom slutenvården då den höga arbetsbelastningen och dess stressfaktorer påverkar sjuksköterskors arbete, eftersträvar sjuksköterskor en drastisk förändring. / Background: Compassion fatigue occurs when nurses are exposed to challenges in care that affect their work environment. It creates a lack of space for nurses to vent their feelings about patient situations. Nurses are affected by overload of different situations where empathy had a big impact. Aim: The aim is to examine nurses’ perception of compassion fatigue Method: The study has been conducted as a qualitative interview study with semi-structured interviews with 10 registered nurses. Findings: The result was divided into 2 main categories Too tired to carry out nursing and Lack of coping strategies to prevent exhaustion which were then divided into 4 subcategories. In the results, it emerged that nurses stated that the high workload, lack of resources and exhaustion affected the care the patients received. Conclusion: The qualitative study shows that the concept of compassion fatigue in nurses is something that is relevant in inpatient care, as the high workload and its stress factors affect nurses’ work, nurses strive for a drastic change.

I idrottsvärlden är det vanligt förekommande att utövare upplever krav och press från sin omgivning, vilket vid misslyckanden ofta leder till en hög grad av självkritiska tankar. I sammanhanget har självmedkänsla visat sig vara en hjälpsam strategi för att hantera negativa tankar, men relativt lite forskning inom denna domän återfinns inom den idrottsliga kontexten. Vidare indikerar aktuell forskning att effekten av självmedkänsla påverkas av anknytningsstil. Således var syftet med denna experimentella studie att undersöka om en kortvarig intervention med fokus på självmedkänsla kan påverka grad av självkritiska tankar hos kvinnliga fotbollsspelare, samt om spelarnas anknytningsstil kan predicera förmågan att framgångsrikt ta till sig interventionen.  Urvalet bestod av aktiva kvinnliga fotbollsspelare i åldrarna 15–31 år (N=74) från sex lag som randomiserades till en interventionsgrupp, respektive kontrollgrupp. För att besvara frågeställningarna användes självskattningsformulären Self-compassion Scale Athlete Version (SCS-AV), Self-criticism Scale Athlete Version (SC-AV) samt Experiences in Close Relationships - Relationship Structures questionnaire (ECR-RS). Varians- och regressionsanalyser visade att interventionen signifikant påverkat deltagarnas upplevda grad av mindfulness och samhörighet, samt att grad av undvikande anknytning kan predicera deltagarnas upplevda omsorg och vänlighet mot sig själv. Sammanfattningsvis ger studien visst stöd till att en korttidsbaserad intervention i självmedkänsla kan ge gynnsamma effekter på kvinnliga fotbollsspelares självmedkänsla. Framtida forskning bör fokusera på vad som är verksamma mekanismer i interventioner av självmedkänsla i en idrottspopulation för att åstadkomma goda och reliabla behandlingsutfall. / In the sports world, it is common for practitioners to experience demands and pressure from their surroundings, which in the event of failure often leads to a high degree of self-critical thoughts. In this context, self-compassion has been shown to be a helpful strategy for dealing with negative thoughts, but relatively little research in this domain is found within the sporting context. Furthermore, current research indicates that the effect of self-compassion is influenced by attachment style. Thus, the aim of this experimental study was to investigate whether a short-term intervention focusing on self-compassion can affect the degree of self-critical thoughts in female soccer players, as well as whether the players' attachment style can predict the ability to successfully adopt the intervention. The sample consisted of active female soccer players aged 15-31 years (N=74) from six teams who were randomized to an intervention group and a control group, respectively. To answer the questions, the assessment forms Self-compassion Scale Athlete Version (SCS-AV), Self-criticism Scale Athlete Version (SC-AV) and Experiences in Close Relationships - Relationship Structures questionnaire (ECR-RS) were used. Variance and regression analysis showed that the intervention significantly affected the participants' perceived degree of mindfulness and common humanity, and that the degree of avoidant attachment can predict the participants' perceived self-kindness. In summary, this study provides some support that a short-term self-compassion intervention can have beneficial effects on female soccer players' self-compassion. Future research should focus on the mechanisms at work in self-compassion interventions in an athletic population to achieve good treatment and reliability outcomes.