What is compassion and how can we develop this skill?
Another Word For Compassion….And More
Compassion is 'An awareness of suffering, approaching it, and being motivated to alleviate it' (1).
You can view compassion as a skill you can strengthen. It is a valuable approach to coping with suffering and countering self-criticism.
Psychologists divide compassion into three components:
Awareness of suffering
Engaging with the person (yourself or another)
Working to reduce suffering
This definition requires people to detect suffering, not shy away from it, and act to reduce distress.
The rise of compassion
There are several reasons why compassion has become more popular in recent years. The landmark book ‘The Compassionate Mind’ by Paul Gilbert has been particularly influential. Other reasons include:
The rise of mindfulness: Mindfulness has become popular and shares features of compassion.
Mental health awareness: There is a continued increase in mental health awareness. We continue the search for effective interventions.
Shared adversity: Large-scale suffering from the pandemic and lockdowns has increased the focus on wellbeing.
Compassion Synonym
Synonyms and related terms for compassion include caring, kindness, awareness, concern, love, and warmth.
The health benefits of compassion
Some benefits of compassion include:
Improved mental health: Compassion is linked to improved mental health and reduced stress, anxiety, and depression (2).
Improved physical health: Compassion has also been shown to improve physical health. It is associated with reduced stress and burnout (3).
Improved relationships: Compassion is associated with increased relationship quality (4).
Increased happiness: Compassion is thought to improve mood and happiness (5).
Compassion vs empathy vs sympathy
What are the differences between compassion, empathy and sympathy?
Compassion is being aware of suffering in others and trying to do something about it.
Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of others. Empathy is often thought of as the ability to 'put yourself in someone else's shoes'. Compassion is more about detecting and responding to distress.
Sympathy is feeling sorry for someone.
Compassion-Focused Therapy
Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) is a talking therapy. The focus is on helping people to be more compassionate towards themselves and others. It can help people deal with difficult emotions, such as shame, guilt, and self-criticism, and help them develop positive relationships. Paul Gilbert developed CFT.
What is compassion fatigue?
Compassion fatigue is the 'cost of caring', or the stress and burnout experienced with repeated exposure to suffering (6). Much of the attention on compassion fatigue has been directed towards emergency and health service workers. Compassion fatigue has been linked with several factors, ranging from anxiety to coping style (7).
Increasing compassion
Acting with compassion doesn't need to involve complex acts. Increasing compassion towards yourself and others requires a focus on the three components of compassion:
Approaching it
Doing things to alleviate distress
Some things you can do include:
Practising self-compassion: This means being kind and understanding towards yourself, even when you make mistakes. Find example exercises on this website.
Practising mindfulness: This means being present and aware of your thoughts, feelings, and actions.
Understanding others: Paying attention and actively listening to people's experiences. It is vital you don't shy away from their distress. Instead, try to understand their difficulties.
Acting: You can act to reduce suffering in all sorts of ways. Listening to another person is sometimes the best form of help. But you can do other things like visiting someone lonely or isolated. You can provide practical support to someone in need (e.g., getting their groceries).
If you don't know how to help someone, try asking 'What can do I now to be helpful?'
Compassion Quotes
If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete. Jack Kornfield
Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognise our shared humanity. Pema Chodron
To err is human, to forgive, divine. Alexander Pope
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. Plato
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References
(1) Kolts, R. L., Bell., T., Bennett-Levy, J., & Irons, C. (2018). Experiencing compassion-focused therapy from the inside out: A self-practice/self-reflection workbook for therapists. New York: Guilford Press.
(2) Biber D. (2022). Mindful self-compassion for nurses: a systematic review. Nursing management (Harrow, London, England : 1994), 29(3), 18–24. https://doi.org/10.7748/nm.2021.e2028
(3) Kotera, Y., & Van Gordon, W. (2021). Effects of self-compassion training on work-related well-being: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.630798
(4) Lathren, C.R., Rao, S.S., Park, J. et al. Self-Compassion and Current Close Interpersonal Relationships: a Scoping Literature Review. Mindfulness 12, 1078–1093 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-020-01566-5
(5) Pastore, O. L., Brett, B., & Fortier, M. S. (2022). Self-Compassion and Happiness: Exploring the Influence of the Subcomponents of Self-Compassion on Happiness and Vice Versa. Psychological Reports. https://doi.org/10.1177/00332941221084902
(6) Cocker, F., & Joss, N. (2016). Compassion Fatigue among Healthcare, Emergency and Community Service Workers: A Systematic Review. International journal of environmental research and public health, 13(6), 618. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph13060618
(7) Zeidner, M., Hadar, D., Matthews, G., & Roberts, R. D. (2013). Personal factors related to compassion fatigue in health professionals. Anxiety, stress, and coping, 26(6), 595–609. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615806.2013.777045