Self-Compassion Mediates the Impact of Family Support on Clinical and Personal Recovery Among People with Mental Illness

Abstract

Objectives The present study aimed to investigate the impact of family support on the recovery of people with mental illness and to explore the potential mechanisms underlying this impact. Specifically, we examined whether family support would be associated with clinical recovery (as indicated by symptom severity, social functioning, and work functioning) and personal recovery (as indicated by recovery perceptions and life satisfaction) among people with mental illness. We also examined whether these associations would be mediated by self-compassion. Method A total of 356 people with mental illness provided cross-sectional questionnaire data on family support, self-compassion, symptom severity, social functioning, work functioning, recovery perceptions, and life satisfaction. Results Path analyses showed that family support was associated positively with self-compassion, which was, in turn, related to lower symptom severity, higher social functioning and work functioning, more positive perceptions of recovery, and greater life satisfaction. Sobel tests and bootstrap analyses further revealed that family support had indirect effects on symptom severity, social functioning, work functioning, recovery perceptions, and life satisfaction via self-compassion. Conclusions Our findings indicate that people with mental illness who receive greater support from the family are better able to have self-caring attitudes. With higher levels of self-compassion, they may have less psychopathology and better functioning. They may also have more positive experiences and perceptions of recovery and attain greater levels of life satisfaction and enjoyment. Preregistration This study is not preregistered.

Perceived social support and anxiety: The mediating role of self-compassion and the moderating role of culture

“…Based on data collected from Jews and Arabs in Israel, our results showed that self-compassion mediated the relationship between perceived social support and anxiety. The mediation effect is in line with previous research accenuating the role of self-compassion as a mediator between percieved social support and wellbeing aspects, (Chan, et al, 2023;Wilson et al 2020). This indicates that individuals who are offered greater support through their different social relationships are more likely to be compassionate to themselves and as a result have a more positive wellbeing.…”

“…Wilson, Weiss & Shook, (2020) found that self -compassion was one of three factors that accounted for perceived social support and psychological wellbeing outcomes. Similarly, Chan, Yip & Tsui, (2023), investigated the impact of family support on the recovery of people with mental illness and explored the potential mechanisms underlying this impact. They found positive associations between family support and self-compassion.…”

Perceived stigma from mental health service providers and its adverse impact on service engagement and recovery among people with mental illness.

“…Higher scores indicated higher levels of clinical recovery. This measure had good validity and reliability in past studies (Chan et al, 2023). Its Cronbach’s α was 0.91 in this study.…”

Recovery-oriented nursing service for people with schizophrenia in the community: An integrative review

“…Existing evidence suggests that various factors contribute to promoting personal recovery among individuals with mental illness. For example, strong family support has been associated with a sense of being on the path to recovery, as it influences feelings of happiness and fulfillment in life (Chan et al, 2023 ; Kaewprom et al, 2011 ). Additionally, community attitudes toward mental health are crucial in helping individuals overcome stigma and regain control over their lives (Chan et al, 2018 ).…”