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Self-Compassion and the Need of Self-Preservation

Terror management theory research suggests that self-esteem acts as an anxiety buffer and high self-esteem can reduce implicit death thoughts and worldview defense. Self-compassion, it is argued, enhances wellbeing by making people feel safe and secure, while self-esteem makes people feel superior and sometimes unrealistically self-confident. Through a series of studies, this dissertation investigated buffering of death anxiety by self-compassion. Studies 1 and 2 investigated the role of trait (Study 1) and induced (Study 2) self-compassion in buffering existential anxiety by reducing implicit death thoughts. Studies 3 and 4 investigated the role of trait (Study 3) and induced (Study 4) self-compassion in buffering existential anxiety by reducing worldview defense. The series of studies did not support the proposed hypotheses, as they failed to replicate the expected mortality salience effects. Because of this, the effects of self-compassion on implicit death anxiety were also not evident. Possible reasons for failure to reject the null hypotheses are discussed and recommendation for future studies is given.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:arizona.edu/oai:arizona.openrepository.com:10150/620629
Date January 2016
CreatorsAshish, Dev, Ashish, Dev
ContributorsKaszniak, Alfred W., Kaszniak, Alfred W., Sbarra, David A., Shisslak, Catherine M., Sullivan, Daniel
PublisherThe University of Arizona.
Source SetsUniversity of Arizona
Languageen_US
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext, Electronic Dissertation
RightsCopyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.

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