Self-Compassion As A Potential Mediator Of Shame and Aggression in Youth Offenders

Abstract

Prior research has identified a strong link between experiences of shame and aggressive behavior in populations across the lifespan, but the mechanisms of this relationship are unclear. One potential mediator of this relationship is self-compassion, a teachable emotional regulation skill. This study aimed to investigate whether self-compassion served as a mediator between two specific aspects of the shame experience (negative self-evaluation and emotional discomfort) and aggressive behavior in this sample of adolescents. One hundred and fourteen adolescents in the Rocky Mountain region ages 11-18, referred to services from disciplinary agencies, participated in the study. Each completed the Adolescent Shame-Proneness Scale, the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire, the Self-Compassion Scale, and a demographic questionnaire. Bootstrapped mediation analysis revealed that self-compassion served as a significant mediator between both aspects of shame and aggression. Across both models, aspects of shame-proneness significantly predicted aggression in the initial analysis, but the addition of self-compassion as a mediator rendered those relationships non-significant.  These results suggest that self-compassion may be a viable target for intervention with at-risk and legally-involved adolescents exhibiting externalizing symptoms as well as internalizing symptoms.