Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Edinburgh, UK.
Psychol Psychother. 2020 Sep;93(3):587-620. doi: 10.1111/papt.12245. Epub 2019 Aug 1.
Evidence suggests that self-compassion is linked to psychological benefits. Compassion-focused therapy emphasizes the importance of developing abilities to self-soothe in alleviating psychological distress. However, little is known about how the feeling of soothe is understood, experienced, and achieved in everyday life. This study addressed two research questions: (1) How is the feeling of soothe understood? (2) How is the feeling of soothe experienced in everyday life?
This is part of our ongoing research Project Soothe (www.projectsoothe.com), which collects soothing images from the public with the goal to develop a bank of soothing images for psychotherapeutic and research use. We also set up an online survey to explore how individuals understand and experience the feeling of soothe in everyday lives. The current study was based on the qualitative narratives obtained in this survey.
A total of 176 participants were recruited. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.
Three themes emerged in response to the first research question: (1) a complex interconnected state of feelings, (2) self-soothe and being soothed, and (3) involvement of physical sensations. Five themes emerged regarding the second research question: (1) venturing out in nature, (2) being in a familiar surrounding, (3) being solitary, (4) being affiliated, and (5) being physically and mentally relaxed.
Our study illustrated the importance of affiliations, physical sensations, mindfulness, connection with nature, and solitude on the cultivation of soothe. Results may help develop therapeutic techniques in enhancing self-soothe by tapping into individuals' understanding and subjective experience in everyday contexts.
Compassion-focused therapy and related third wave therapies emphasize the role of cultivating self-compassion and feelings of self-soothe in reducing psychological distress and improving mental well-being. This study sheds light on how individuals understand and achieve self-soothe in everyday life contexts. Individuals' subjective narratives suggested that both being in solitude and affiliated with others were associated with feelings of self-soothe, in addition to feeling connected with the nature, being in familiar environments and experiencing physical sensations. These findings will help practitioners develop different ways to enhance individuals' self-compassion by tapping into their understanding and experience of self-soothe in everyday life.
有证据表明，自我同情与心理益处有关。关注同情心的治疗强调发展自我安慰能力以减轻心理困扰的重要性。然而，对于在日常生活中如何理解、体验和获得安慰感知之甚少。本研究提出了两个研究问题：（1）安慰感是如何被理解的？（2）日常生活中是如何体验安慰感的？
这是我们正在进行的“安慰”研究项目（www.projectsoothe.com）的一部分，该项目从公众那里收集安慰性的图片，旨在为心理治疗和研究开发一套安慰性图片库。我们还设立了一个在线调查，以探索个体如何在日常生活中理解和体验安慰感。本研究基于该调查中获得的定性叙述。
共招募了 176 名参与者。使用主题分析对数据进行分析。
针对第一个研究问题，出现了三个主题：（1）一种复杂的相互关联的感觉状态，（2）自我安慰和被安慰，以及（3）涉及身体感觉。关于第二个研究问题出现了五个主题：（1）冒险进入大自然，（2）在熟悉的环境中，（3）独处，（4）隶属关系，以及（5）身心放松。
我们的研究说明了联系、身体感觉、正念、与自然的联系以及独处对培养安慰感的重要性。结果可能有助于通过挖掘个体在日常环境中的理解和主观体验，开发增强自我安慰的治疗技术。
关注同情心的治疗和相关的第三波治疗强调培养自我同情心和自我安慰感在减轻心理困扰和改善心理健康方面的作用。本研究阐明了个体如何在日常生活背景下理解和实现自我安慰。个体的主观叙述表明，独处和与他人隶属关系都与自我安慰感有关，此外还与与自然的联系、在熟悉的环境中以及体验身体感觉有关。这些发现将帮助从业者通过挖掘个体在日常生活中的自我安慰理解和体验，开发不同的方法来增强个体的自我同情心。
