1 Introduction

There has been a growing interest in understanding psychological resources and individual strength (Gillham and Seligman 1999), as well as identifying the adaptive ways individuals relate to themselves across successes and failures (e.g., Neff 2003). Across fields of human behavior and functioning, these interests have been addressed and influenced by researchers who approach their areas of research from a strengths-focused, rather than neutral or deficit-focused, perspective. The expansion of approaches and theories from this perspective has included positive dispositional traits and affective experiences that are linked with subjective well-being. Subjective well-being is a broad category of constructs concerning affective experiences as well as evaluations of fulfillment and life satisfaction (see Diener et al. 1999). Interest in contemplative topics of psychology have also bolstered focus on areas such as mindfulness and self-compassion, both as buffers from distress and correlates of subjective well-being. Our goal in the current study was to advance efforts in understanding the ties between self-compassion and multiple aspects of subjective well-being across affective and evaluative areas. Below, we discuss these areas of subjective well-being (SWB; affective experiences, subjective happiness, life satisfaction) and self-compassion. Our major aim in this study was to better understand the ways self-compassion may uniquely inform aspects of SWB above and beyond robust covariates (i.e., gratitude) and other reports of well-being. To address this aim, we introduce two studies considering the direct ties and unique ties of self-compassion with well-being among emerging adults.

1.1 Experiences of Positive and Negative Affect

Affect involves a range of pleasant and unpleasant states individuals encounter day-to-day, as they encounter various successes and setbacks in their endeavors. Individuals differ in the proportion of positive or pleasant affective experiences they encounter relative to negative or unpleasant affective experiences (Diener et al. 1985b). Further, people differ in how intensely they experience affect, though individuals who typically experience more intense positive affect and emotions are also more likely to experience more intense negative affect (Diener et al. 1985a). In studies of character strengths and psychological resources, there is typically interest in the benefits of positive affect and the proportion of positive to negative experiences. While negative affect is recognized as having the potential to inform individuals of potential conflicts in their current goals or a sign of setback that requires adjustment, positive affect is believed to provide broad benefits for long-term outlook and the development of personal resources. Fredrickson (1998) has argued that experiences of positive affect allow for a less-constrained or scripted response to an event, unlike fearful or angry responses which may help remove an obstacle or encourage leaving a threatening situation. Fredrickson has also argued and found evidence that positive affect and emotional states allow an individual to select from a broader set of behavior options for exploring their environment and resultantly building long-term resources for later use and benefit (Fredrickson 1998; Fredrickson and Branigan 2005). Further, a review of studies found positive affect to predict later strengths in compassion toward others, skills in conflict management, and creative thinking (Lyubomirsky et al. 2005a). Current evidence suggests individuals require a ratio of approximately three positive experiences for each negative experience to feel as though they are flourishing in their daily lives, rather than in a stagnant or languishing state (Fredrickson and Losada 2005). These findings coincide with reviews regarding the impacts of positive and negative affect, underscoring how readily negative affect directs attention and resources to real or perceived threats (e.g., conflict with an interaction partner) and the salience of negative events in memory (see Baumeister et al. 2001). Unsurprisingly, extensive or overwhelming experiences of negative affect can expose individuals to risks of psychopathology (e.g., Nolen-Hoeksema 2000) and threaten interpersonal functioning (e.g., Bevan and Hale 2006). Some reviews also suggest that individuals already overwhelmed with negative thoughts (Nolen-Hoeksema et al. 2008) or anticipation of negative feelings (Kashdan 2007) may have extensive trouble redirecting attention to the positive experiences of their lives.

1.2 Subjective Happiness

Subjective happiness is a global evaluation of one’s status as a happy or unhappy person. Subjective happiness is thought to be a broader domain of subjective well-being that includes both an overall evaluation of one’s happiness state and a comparison of one’s happiness with that of others (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997). This subjective report differs from comparisons of summed positive and negative experiences, as individuals may evaluate objectively similar experiences differently, based on culture, personality, and situational context (see Myers and Diener 1995). Indeed, Lyubomirsky and Tucker (1998; Study 1) found that young adults who were rated by peers as being happy or unhappy did not differ in the types of positive and negative life events they recounted. Further, happier individuals evaluated stressful events more positively and with more humor than unhappy individuals who shared similar events and objective judges who rated shared events. Self-other reports of subjective happiness by individuals and close others (i.e., friends, romantic partners) tend to also show high agreement (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997), suggesting happier individuals present themselves as better handling the highs and lows of life with those around them. Subjective happiness is linked to improved personality and psychopathology outlook for individuals and is associated with pleasant, low-conflict relationships (Diener and Seligman 2002). Further, while there have been previous concerns that subjective happiness may reflect Pollyannic or exceedingly euphoric tendencies among individuals, recent evidence suggests that very happy individuals do not show elevated risks for difficulties managing affective intensity either for positive or negative emotions, compared to relatively average and unhappy peers (Diener and Seligman 2002).

1.3 Life Satisfaction

Life satisfaction is a major cognitive component of subjective well-being that involves evaluations of one’s current life status and the events impacting one’s life (Diener et al. 1985a). Previous theories suggest that evaluations of life satisfaction, like reports of subjective happiness, are based on individual values of salient life indicators that may not align closely with objective evidence of quality of life (Schwarz and Strack 1999). Salient life indicators often involve social or performance-related successes (Clark et al. 2002; Lepp et al. 2014; Schimmack et al. 2002), but not trivial factors such as daily weather changes (Lucas and Lawless 2013). Indeed, evidence suggests that factors such as individual pleasure derived from salient activities, engagement with those activities, and the reflective meaning derived from life experiences account for evaluations of a fulfilling versus an empty life (Peterson et al. 2005). As with other areas of subjective well-being, life satisfaction predicts improved outlook and psychological adjustment among individuals. Among adolescents and emerging adults, life satisfaction is positively associated with self-esteem and extroversion, and is negatively associated with emotion dysregulation and psychopathology (Diener and Diener 1995; Diener et al. 1985a; Headley et al. 1993; Suldo and Huebner 2004, 2006). Some evidence suggests that, while it may fluctuate over the course of multiple years (Clark et al. 2002; Fujita and Diener 2005), average life satisfaction can moderate long-term adjustment and buffer individuals from major life stresses (Suldo and Huebner 2004). Alongside routine experiences of affect and happiness, life satisfaction contributes to the broader subjective well-being and adjustment of individuals.

1.4 Self-Compassion

Self-compassion addresses the adaptive ways individuals relate to themselves through times of distress and setback (Neff 2003). In recent years, researchers have utilized a model of self-compassion which incorporates three major components: an aspect of self-kindness during distress, rather than self-criticism; a sense of connectivity with others and understanding that setbacks are part of the common human experience, rather than a sense of isolation; and mindful awareness of relevant issues to be resolved, rather than over-identifying with or ignoring relevant issues (Neff 2003). Self-compassion involves evaluations of unpleasant events with a sense of understanding and tolerance, which could shape how individuals find happiness in their experiences and continue finding fulfillment in their lives. Further, self-compassion involves management and resolution of negative affect, which could provide more opportunities to redirect focus on aspects of positive affect. Indeed, studies have shown self-compassion to buffer from emotional distress and psychopathology across community and clinical samples (e.g., anxiety, depression; Van Dam et al. 2011; Krieger et al. 2013) and predict more optimism and positive evaluations of oneself without risks of narcissism (Neff and Vonk 2009; Study 1). Self-compassionate individuals also report having more psychological resources and positive experiences such as curiosity, wisdom, and optimism (e.g., Neff et al. 2007; Neff and Vonk 2009; Study 2).

The implications of self-compassion are not limited to intra-individual well-being. Self-compassionate individuals are also more likely to endorse well-balanced relationship strategies involving healthy stances for the self alongside consideration for others: holding positive, but realistic views of themselves (Neff and Vonk 2009); accepting responsibility for mistakes (Leary et al. 2007); placing setbacks in a broad perspective with life history (Leary et al. 2007); favoring compassionate modes of thinking following transgressions with others (Allen et al. 2014); showing greater care and compassion toward romantic partners (Neff and Beretvas 2013); and incorporating conflict resolution approaches that avoid degrading either self or the partner (Yarnell and Neff 2013). Similarly, as with areas of SWB, self-compassion also has ties to prosocial strategies such as the use of forgiveness and compromise (Neff and Pommier 2013; Yarnell and Neff 2013) and lower uses of anger (Neff and Vonk 2009; Study 1).

Across a growing body of studies, self-compassion has been used to anticipate outcomes of SWB across affective and cognitive domains (see Zessin et al. 2015). Self-compassion is a promising candidate as a robust predictor of SWB, being linked to greater positive affect, overall happiness, and life satisfaction (Neff et al. 2007; Wei et al. 2011). Some of these ties, including those to happiness and positive affect, have been shown to be unique beyond covariates such as Big Five personality factors (Neff et al. 2007). Even with these promising findings, there remain questions on the extent to which self-compassion provides unique variance in outcomes of SWB.

1.5 Gratitude as a Covariate

Current theories suggest gratitude promotes recognition of benefits from others or life’s circumstances, supports the use of prosocial behaviors toward others, and increases motivation to extend prosocial behaviors toward others (McCullough et al. 2001, 2008). That is, gratitude contributes to a broader outlook on life that recognizes and motivates appreciation for the positive aspects of the world (see Wood et al. 2010). Gratitude is a consistent and robust predictor of SWB with links to experiences of positive affect, buffers from negative affect, and more positive evaluations of life standing and satisfaction (e.g., McCullough et al. 2002; Wood et al. 2008). Gratitude promotes awareness of benefits from others and willingness to reciprocate benefits from others, either to the original benefactor or a “substitute” individual (McCullough et al. 2001; Tsang 2007). Further, interventions that promote gratitude also contribute to improvements in multiple areas of SWB (see Wood et al. 2010). Gratitude’s implications for tendencies to perceive and respond to life’s benefits and challenges make it complementary to multiple aspects of SWB (Watkins et al. 2003). Further, gratitude, which contributes to an appreciative outlook for life’s benefits, has been linked with other constructs that involve constructive evaluations of life, such as self-compassion (Breen et al. 2010). Therefore, because gratitude is linked with both self-compassion and SWB, we found it important to account for gratitude as a covariate in our research, so that we might better address the unique influence of self-compassion on SWB.

Self-compassion is closely linked to covariates of SWB, such as individual differences in gratitude (see Neff and Seppala 2016 for a review). Yet, there is burgeoning evidence that self-compassion accounts for unique variance in buffers from anxiety and depression beyond mindfulness (Van Dam et al. 2011) and in predicting broad views of self-worth beyond self-esteem (Neff and Vonk 2009). It would be informative to understand whether self-compassion accounts for unique variance in predicting psychological resources such as these areas of SWB (Hunsley and Meyer 2003).

We aimed to replicate the direct ties of self-compassion with areas of SWB (experiences of affect; subjective happiness; life satisfaction), as well as determine whether self-compassion would account for unique variance in each domain of well-being beyond covariates such as gratitude and the simultaneous influences of remaining SWB domains. We addressed these aims across two studies, which are presented below.

1.6 The Current Studies

Two samples of undergraduate students were recruited to complete a series of computerized questionnaires regarding experiences of positive and negative affect, subjective happiness, life satisfaction, gratitude and self-compassion. We were interested in two major hypotheses: (1) that self-compassion would be directly and positively associated with reports of SWB; and (2) that self-compassion would account for unique variance with each aspect of SWB beyond the influence of gratitude and other reports of well-being.

1.7 Study 1

The first study considered ties of self-compassion, gratitude, and well-being among incoming college students. Self-compassion was expected to account for unique variance for each outcome above and beyond the remaining reports of subjective well-being and demographic influences.

2 Methods

2.1 Participants

As part of a larger study, incoming college students were recruited from a southeastern US university in two cohorts across two fall semesters (cohort 1 N = 101; cohort 2 N = 60) semesters for a total of 161 participants. The total sample consisted of more women (69.6%) than men (30.4%). Students were predominantly traditional-college age (M age = 18.71 years, SD = 2.40), though student age range was from 17 to 41 years. Regarding racial identity, a majority of students identified as White or European American (77.6%), 1.2% of students identified as Black or African American, 6.3% of students identified as Southeast Asian or Pacific Islander, 2.4% of students identified as Latino, 1.9% of students identified as Middle Eastern, and 10% identified as multiracial. Twenty-nine students (18.0%) were incoming transfers from other colleges and universities.

2.2 Procedures

As part of a multi-phase study on the initial months of the college transition, students completed a baseline series of online questionnaires. Measures from this session were designed to take no more than 1 h. Participants were entered into a lottery for $5 gift cards to local restaurants and were offered extra credit if they were enrolled in Psychology courses.

2.3 Measures

2.3.1 Experiences of Positive and Negative Affect

Students completed the College Adjustment Test (Pennebaker et al. 1990), which measures experiences of affect from the previous week. This scale includes subscales of positive affect (six items; internal consistency = .82), negative affect (nine items; internal consistency = .79), and a scale of homesickness which was not included in the current study. Items were completed on a 7-point Likert scale (1 = Not at all, 7 = A great deal).

2.3.2 Subjective Happiness

Students reported on subjective happiness experiences using the Subjective Happiness Scale (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997). This scale involves four items concerning happiness in one’s life. Items on the SHS are originally designed to be presented on a 7-point Likert scale. Given the nature of this larger study, items across scales were constrained to 5-point Likert scales for consistency and ease for participants (1 = Not at all, 5 = A great deal; sample item, ‘Some people are generally not very happy. Although they are not depressed, they never seem as happy as they might be. To what extent does this characterization describe you?’). This approach involved a tradeoff challenging the original psychometric properties of the scale. Scale reliability in the sample was acceptable (internal consistency = .91).

2.3.3 Trait Gratitude

Students completed the Gratitude Questionnaire-6 (McCullough et al. 2002), consisting of items on dispositional gratitude. This scale involved six items. Again, given the nature of this study, though the original items of this scale are presented on a 7-point scale, they were constrained to a 5-point scale for this study (1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree; sample item, ‘I am grateful to a wide variety of people’; internal consistency = .81). Again, this approach challenged the original psychometric properties of this scale. The reliability for scale items was acceptable (internal consistency = .85).

2.3.4 Life Satisfaction

Students reported on life satisfaction using the Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener et al. 1985a). This scale involved five items completed on a 5-point Likert Scale (1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree; sample item, ‘The conditions of my life are excellent’).

2.3.5 Self-Compassion

Students completed the short version of the Self-Compassion Scale (Raes et al. 2011), reporting on ways of relating to the self during times of personal distress. This measure includes 12 items on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Almost never, 5 = Almost always; sample item, ‘When I feel inadequate in some way, I try to remind myself that feelings of inadequacy are shared by most people’). The global self-compassion construct was of interest (internal consistency = .86).

3 Results

3.1 Preliminary Analyses

Bivariate correlations and t-tests were used to determine whether students differed in variable responses based on background characteristics or year of study involvement. Older students reported lower life satisfaction (r = − .18, p = .021) and women reported lower self-compassion than men (r = − .20, p = .011). T-tests suggested the first study cohort reported higher life-satisfaction than the second study cohort (t(158) = 2.03, p = .044).

3.2 Partial Correlations

Partial correlations supported direct associations between self-compassion, gratitude, and aspects of SWB. Demographics of age, sex, transfer status, and year of participation were controlled. Self-compassion was significantly associated with reports of gratitude, experienced affect, subjective happiness, and life satisfaction (all rs > |.24|, ps < .003). Similarly, all reports of SWB were significantly associated (all rs > |.33|, ps < .001). All other variables displayed an inverse association with experiences of negative affect, as expected. See Table 1 for variable descriptives and partial correlations. These findings replicate previous results regarding the ties among self-compassion and areas of SWB.

Table 1 Demographics and partial correlations among study 1 variables (Controlling for age, sex, transfer student status, and study cohort involvement)
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3.3 Hierarchical Regressions

Hierarchical regressions tested whether self-compassion was robustly associated with each report of SWB, beyond covariates of demographic factors and other reports of well-being. Age, sex, transfer status, and year of study participation were entered on the first step. Gratitude was entered on the second step. Reports of well-being that were not the current dependent variable were included as covariates on the third step. Self-compassion was entered on the fourth step. See Table 2 for regression results.

Table 2 Hierarchical Regressions of gratitude and subjective well-being (study 1)
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The model omnibus was significant for each outcome (ps < .01). Self-compassion was robustly and negatively associated with negative affect. Further, self-compassion was robustly and positively associated with subjective happiness. Self-compassion was not robustly associated with positive affect or life satisfaction. Findings provide mixed support for our second hypothesis that self-compassion would account for unique variance in areas of subjective well-being beyond other influences of well-being.

3.4 Study 2

The second study considered similar ties of self-compassion with gratitude and SWB. For this study, undergraduates from across the college career, rather than solely incoming students, were recruited. Again, self-compassion was expected to remain a robust predictor of outcomes and other self-reports. We were interested in replicating the direct ties of self-compassion with dimensions of SWB.

4 Methods

4.1 Participants

As part of a larger study, undergraduate students were recruited from a southeastern US university and participated in data collection across two time points, approximately 2-weeks apart. Among the 218 students completed the initial portion of the study, 143 students (82.5% female; M age = 19.5 years) volunteered to return for the second portion of study and questionnaires and brief computerized tasks. These students were considered for current analyses. Forty-nine (34.3%) students were first-year, 32 (22.4%) were sophomores, 35 (24.5%) were juniors, and 27 (18.9%) were seniors. A majority of students identified as White or European American (79.7%), five (3.5%) identified as Black or African-American, 14 (9.8%) identified as Asian American or Pacific Islander, five (3.5%) identified as Latino, and five (3.5%) identified as multiracial.

4.2 Procedures

Students completed a series of questionnaires across two sessions designed to take no more than 1 h each, for a total of 2 h. For each completed session, participants were offered extra credit for Psychology courses. In the first study session, students reported on subjective happiness, trait gratitude, and self-compassion. In the second study session, students reported on experiences of affect and life satisfaction, before completing an emotion-eliciting writing task and completing immediate follow-up reports on affect (not considered in the present study). The measure of experiences of affect differed from the first sample.

4.3 Measures

4.3.1 Experiences of Positive and Negative Affect

Students completed the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule-Short Version (MacKinnon et al. 1999). This scale asked students to report on current experiences of 10 total affective states. Half of the affective states were pleasant or positive (sample item, “Inspired,” internal consistency = .84), whereas the remaining half were unpleasant or negative (sample item, “Distressed,” internal consistency = .86). Items were completed on a 5-point Likert scale.Footnote 1

4.3.2 Previously Mentioned Scales

Students also completed the Subjective Happiness Scale (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997; internal consistency = .86), Gratitude-Questionnaire-6 (McCullough et al. 2002; internal consistency = .76), Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener et al. 1985a; internal consistency = .87) and Self-Compassion Scale-Short-Form (Raes et al. 2011; internal consistency = .81) as described above. While the items were identical between studies, responses for the Subjective Happiness Scale, Gratitude Questionnaire-6, and Satisfaction with Life Scale were collected at the original 1–7 Likert scales for the second study. This is because the number of total tasks and sessions was briefer and there was less concern in the larger study of burdening participants with varying Likert scales. This removed challenges to the original psychometric properties of these scales but introduced concerns in comparing the properties of these scales between the two samples.

5 Results

5.1 Preliminary Analyses

T-tests determined whether students who dropped out of the study between the two data collection points significantly differed from those who remained in the study. No significant mean-level differences were found in study outcomes (all ps > .200). Within the current sample, bivariate correlations were used to determine whether demographic factors of age, gender, and academic level were associated with study variables. Women reported higher levels of trait gratitude (r = .23, p = .006), but there were no other sex effects. Due to one missing gratitude report, an imputation was conducted using the Hmisc package to ensure all participants had complete data for analyses (Harrell 2018).

5.2 Partial Correlations

Partial correlations were used to determine direct associations between self-compassion and aspects of subjective well-being. Demographics of age, gender, and academic level were controlled. Self-compassion was significantly associated with reports of gratitude, affect, subjective happiness, and life satisfaction (all rs > |.25|, ps < .003). Similarly, for all items, except negative affect, correlations were significant (rs > |.30|, ps < .001). Negative affect was significantly associated with subjective happiness and life satisfaction (rs > |.25|, p < .001), but not with positive affect and trait gratitude (rs < |.13|, ps > .145). See Table 3 for variable descriptives and partial correlations. As with Study 1, these findings are in line with expectations.

Table 3 Demographics and partial correlations among study 2 variables (controlling for age, sex, and academic level)
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5.3 Hierarchical Regressions

As with Study 1, hierarchical regressions tested self-compassion as a unique predictor of separate reports of SWB. Age, sex, and academic level were entered on the first step. Gratitude was included on the second step. Reports on well-being that were not the current dependent variable were included on the third step. Self-compassion was entered on the fourth step. See Table 4 for regression results.

Table 4 Hierarchical regressions of gratitude and subjective well-being (study 2)
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The model omnibus for each outcome was significant (ps < .01). Beyond all other effects, self-compassion was robustly and positively associated with subjective happiness, but was not robustly associated with positive affect, negative affect, or life satisfaction. These findings shared some similarities with Study 1, primarily with trends that self-compassion showed a unique effect for subjective happiness but no other aspects of SWB.

5.4 Secondary Analyses of Indirect Effects in Each Sample

Given trends of self-compassion remaining a consistent predictor of unique variance for subjective happiness but not for other outcomes, we were interested in whether self-compassion may show indirect effects with areas of SWB via subjective happiness. We were particularly interested in this possible indirect effect for two reasons. First, the comparative aspects of subjective happiness may align well with self-compassion’s elements of interpersonal connectivity, positive relatedness during distress, and buffers from isolation during significant challenges (Neff 2003; Gilbert 2005; Mansfield et al. 2015). That is, tendencies to show greater self-kindness and mindful connectivity with others during distress may be distantly connected to aspects of SWB given greater perceptions of the self as personally fulfilled and relatively happy compared to others. Further, this path of effects may mirror the buffering mechanisms of self-compassion from distressing symptoms via constructs such as rumination (see Krieger et al. 2013), pointing toward an additional and more promotive role of self-compassion.

Though self-compassion was robustly tied with subjective happiness, existing theories also point to the importance of positive affect in promoting well-being and broadening resources that should contribute to satisfaction with one’s life (Fredrickson 1998; Fredrickson and Losada 2005). Hence, we addressed an initial model that was informed by the regression findings and two alternative models: (a) a reversed model, where SWB effects predicted self-compassion via subjective happiness; and (b) an alternative model where positive affect, rather than subjective happiness, was the intervening variable. These alternative models are closer in line to Fredrickson’s broaden-and-build theory of emotions suggesting that positive affect can contribute to an increase in resources such as subjective happiness and/or self-compassion (Fredrickson and Branigan 2005). Using these models, we revisited the samples of Study 1 and Study 2 to address possible indirect associations. As with earlier analyses, gratitude was entered as a covariate effect on the intervening variable and each outcome across model configurations.

Because of the number of associations among study variables, we tested models of parallel path effects and indirect effects using SEM software. Using the R statistics program (R Development Core Team 2018) and lavaan package (Rosseel 2012), we first tested two models for each sample: the initially structured model whereby self-compassion predicted subjective happiness and SWB outcomes (see Fig. 1, left panel); and a reversed model where SWB reports predicted subjective happiness and then self-compassion (see Fig. 1, right panel). Differences in Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC; where smaller values indicate relatively greater model fit) were used to address fit between the two directions of effects.Footnote 2 Following support for greater model fit between the initial or reversed model, we then introduced positive affect as an intervening variable, and compared the path effects with the same-structured model that had considered subjective happiness as the intervening variable.

Fig. 1
figure 1

Model of tested indirect effects between self-compassion and well-being. Self-compassion is treated as an exogenous predictor in the initial model (left panel) and well-being reports are treated as exogenous predictors in the reversed model (right panel)

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For Sample 1, the reversed model testing effects of SWB on self-compassion via subjective happiness was better supported than the initial model (Δ df = 0; Δ BIC = 35.6). Similarly, in Sample 2 model comparisons favored the reversed model (Δ df = 0; Δ BIC = 34.7). The path effects for these models are presented in Table 5. For the reversed model, each well-being measure had a significant, direct effect on subjective happiness in each sample (‘a paths’). Further, subjective happiness had direct effects as an intervening variable on self-compassion (‘b path’). Using the same structure as this reversed model, positive affect was tested as an intervening effect, and subjective happiness was tested as one of the exogenous effects on positive affect and self-compassion. Table 5 also includes the path effects for this model. For both samples, the effects from the intervening variable of positive affect onto self-compassion (‘b path’) were not significant. Hence, indirect effects via positive affect were not considered further.Footnote 3

Table 5 Path effects for indirect effects models
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Sobel tests used the path effect estimates from Table 5 (‘a path’ effects from self-compassion onto the intervening variable; ‘b path’ effects from the intervening variable onto outcomes) to address indirect effects from positive affect, negative affect, and life satisfaction onto self-compassion via subjective happiness (Baron and Kenny 1986; Sobel 1982). For Sample 1, an indirect effect was not supported from positive affect (Sobel Test estimate = 1.73, S.E. = .04, p = .084). Indirect effects were supported for negative affect (Sobel Test estimate = -−2.57, S.E. = .03, p = .010) and life satisfaction (Sobel Test estimate = 3.16, S.E. = .03, p = .002). For Sample 2, indirect effects were supported for positive affect (Sobel Test estimate = 2.68, S.E. = .03, p = .007), negative affect (Sobel Test estimate =  − 2.46, S.E. = .03, p = .014), and life satisfaction (Sobel Test estimate = 1.96, S.E. = .02, p = .050).

6 Discussion

The current studies extend consideration of self-compassion as closely tied with subjective well-being (SWB). To address alternative possibilities linking self-compassion and SWB, we considered recent experiences of positive and negative affect, subjective happiness, and satisfaction with one’s life. We expected self-compassion to be significantly associated with greater well-being in each SWB domain, aligning with previous considerations of community (e.g., Neff and McGehee 2010; Neff and Pommier 2013) and college-based young adult populations (e.g., Neff et al. 2005; Wei et al. 2011). We also tested whether self-compassion would be robustly tied to each area of subjective well-being, beyond demographics, dispositional gratitude, and the influence of other well-being measures. To test these hypotheses, we recruited two samples of college students: one sample of incoming first-year and transfer students; a second sample of students across undergraduate academic levels.

Our first hypothesis posited self-compassion would be directly associated with individual differences in subjective well-being after controlling for demographic characteristics. This hypothesis was founded on previous, yet disparate considerations of self-compassion with aspects of subjective well-being (see Neff and Seppala 2016; Zessin et al. 2015). Our hypothesis was supported in each of the current samples, replicating previous work. College adults who report incorporating more self-kindness, connectedness with others, and mindful awareness during setbacks also report experiencing more positive affect and less negative affect, evaluate their lives as more pleasant when compared to others, and are better satisfied with their lives. These trends are above and beyond students’ academic level, relative age, and gender. A second hypothesis for this project posited that self-compassion would be uniquely associated with each aspect of SWB, beyond the influences of demographics, individual differences in gratitude, and remaining well-being reports. To address this hypothesis, hierarchical linear regressions were used. This hypothesis received limited support in both study samples. For experiences of affect and life satisfaction, self-compassion was not a consistent and robust predictor of outcomes. However, for subjective happiness, self-compassion was directly and uniquely associated in each sample. Results suggested that self-compassion, with its emphasis on positive connectivity with others during setbacks, may be closely and uniquely associated with subjective happiness and its evaluations of greater happiness and satisfaction when comparing one’s experiences and fulfillment with those of others (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997; Lyubomirsky and Tucker 1998).

Given the hypothesis test results, we were interested in exploring subjective happiness as an intervening variable between self-compassion and other reports and well-being—addressing clues to possible future directions that could test for longitudinal mechanisms concerning self-compassion and SWB. Previously, mechanisms have been considered regarding the ways self-compassion may buffer from distress by reducing unconstructive forms of evaluation such as rumination (Krieger et al. 2013). The current models were intended to provide insight for whether self-compassion may also be a promising candidate in promoting constructive self-evaluation, such as through subjective happiness. Hence, we addressed an initial model testing effects from self-compassion onto reports of well-being via an intervening effect of subjective happiness (see Fig. 1, left panel). Because all data was collected at a single time-point, it was possible that an alternative, reversed model may better fit the data; hence, a reversed model was also considered (see Fig. 1, right panel). Lastly, frameworks such as the broaden-and-build theory of emotions posit that experiences of positive affect should contribute to the proliferation of psychological resources (Fredrickson 1998; Fredrickson and Branigan 2005; Fredrickson and Losada 2005). Hence, positive affect could provide more compelling evidence as an intervening variable between self-compassion and well-being. Given this, we explored a final model, substituting positive affect for subjective happiness as the intervening variable, using the model configuration that was better supported between the initial and reversed models.

In testing these models, the reversed model, considering reports of SWB as predictors of self-compassion via subjective happiness, was best supported. Indirect effects were then supported from nearly every SWB report, except from positive affect reports in Sample 1. Hence, there was evidence that the ties between well-being and self-compassion may be partly explained by aspects of reasoning such as subjective happiness. Ongoing considerations of these trends would benefit from considering ways earlier experiences of SWB serve as antecedents to more positive forms of evaluating experiences, which could then contribute to greater self-compassion. This is a potential mechanism that is still in line with the broaden-and-build framework of positive experiences allowing for the exploration and development of meaningful resources (i.e., subjective happiness) that can contribute to an upward spiral of positive outcomes and available tools for managing a broad array of life events (i.e., self-compassion).

We originally approached this study considering the ways self-compassion may be a unique predictor of forms of subjective well-being, however, findings suggest that future work may benefit from considering SWB as an antecedent of self-compassion, with experiences of positive affect and satisfaction with life promoting resources for evaluating oneself as a happier individual, which could then coincide with improvements in self-compassion, particularly during distress. That is, activities that promote experiences of positive affect and life satisfaction could contribute to sustained views of the self as a happier individual (see Sheldon and Lyubomirsky 2006), which may then contribute to the more positive ways individuals continue to find positive life meaning during challenges to the self (e.g., Mansfield et al. 2015).

Given the current trends, more work is needed to identify both common aspects and nuances between subjective happiness and self-compassion. We posit two broad areas that may contribute to these constructs being complementary. One possibility involves the forms of evaluation and appraisal these constructs involve as individuals make sense of lived experiences. Individuals higher in self-compassion tend to be more optimistic of potential outcomes (Mansfield et al. 2015; Neff et al. 2007), seek common humanity and understanding during challenges (Allen et al. 2014; Neff 2003), and be buffered from tendencies to ruminate over distress (Krieger et al. 2013; Neff and Vonk 2009). That is, individuals reporting high on these scales seem to be better equipped to find constructive meaning across a range of uplifting and challenging experiences. Individuals higher in subjective happiness also tend to evaluate a range of experiences as being more positive for the self (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997; Lyubomirsky and Tucker 1998). Hence, individual differences in each of these constructs tend to buffer individuals from distress, allowing individuals to more readily move beyond frustration and failure, to better attend to satisfaction and fulfillment in one’s life. Though these remain as distinct constructs, they may be well-positioned to compliment and promote each other given these common aspects of promoting constructive evaluations of one’s life.

Second, each of these constructs may contribute to the balanced management of broad motivations for self-accomplishment/agency and interpersonal accomplishment/relatedness (Bakan 1966). That is, individuals who display more self-compassion and individuals who display more subjective happiness may better manage aspirations for personal mastery alongside aspirations for maintaining close, dependable ties with others without jeopardizing or over-relying on one set of goals. Both subjective happiness and self-compassion appear to buffer individuals from events that can threaten their sense of self-worth, as noted above. Further, higher levels of subjective happiness and self-compassion do not appear to present risks for exceedingly self-focused agency or narcissism, or ego-defensive forms of social comparison (Lyubomirsky et al. 2006; Neff and Vonk 2009). That is, there is no evidence that subjective happiness or self-compassion buffer the self at the risk of degrading or minimizing relations with others. Individuals higher in self-compassion and subjective happiness also tend to feel well-connected in their social relationships, and self-compassion in particular has been linked with uses of healthier relationship strategies toward close others such as romantic partners and better balancing between personal needs with the needs and concerns of others (Allen et al. 2014; Diener and Seligman 2002; Lyubomirsky et al. 2005b; Neff and Beretvas 2013; Neff and Pommier 2013; Yarnell and Neff 2013).

Moving forward, more work will need to be done to replicate the robust ties between self-compassion with subjective happiness, testing the extent these findings are stable across populations that vary in age, cultural background, and social roles/obligations (moving beyond college samples) and testing the stability (or meaningful variance) in these associations over time. Additional work will also need to test causal effects, possibly reinforcing or challenging the models here that as subjective happiness is promoted by happiness-promoting and personally-rewarding activities (Sheldon and Lyubomirsky 2006) self-compassion should continue to be swept up in the upward spiral of improving resources (Fredrickson 1998; Fredrickson and Branigan 2005). Longitudinal studies will also provide opportunities to address cross-causal effects between self-compassion and subjective happiness over time, determining the extent each of these constructive ways of relating to the self and relating to others, across the good times and bad, may compliment and uplift the other.

6.1 Limitations, Strengths, and Future Directions

While these studies offer intriguing outcomes that are deserve additional consideration, they are constrained by method and sample limitations. The samples selected reflect the extensive emphasis of self-compassion on emerging adult and college-based populations. However, the current use of college students may limit the extension of these findings to other demographic groups across the U.S. and in other cultures. Further, each of the current samples was predominantly White and predominantly female. These trends may limit how representative the findings are for ethnically diverse college samples and for men. An additional limitation was the reliance on self-reports for current results. Gathering information directly from participants is a convenient and feasible method of data collection, but this approach would be strengthened with information from additional reporters and study tasks that are more implicit in gathering information on self-compassion and other measures. Although selected based on the broader study tasks for each sample (addressing longer-term aspects of the college transition experience and testing within-session changes in affect, respectively), different measures of affect were used across the two samples, limiting the comparisons of findings between these samples. Further, the measures of subjective happiness and life satisfaction used different Likert-type scales between samples 1 and 2, presenting challenges to the original psychometric properties of these scales. Lastly, the use of the short-form Self-Compassion Scale does not allow for more nuanced considerations of the traditional six factors proposed for this scale (Neff 2003). Further, this shorter scale does not provide opportunities to consider other possible factor configurations among self-compassion items that may better explain ties with subjective happiness and other aspects of SWB (see Costa et al. 2016; Williams et al. 2014).

Although there are concerns on the participant demographics and data collection methods, there are also strengths which benefit the current findings. This study was partly aimed at replicating the direct ties of self-compassion with areas of subjective well-being. We were successful in replicating these findings, while gathering information across a number of subjective well-being areas that have typically been disparate in previous considerations of self-compassion. Further, the use of two separate samples reinforces the replicated findings of previous studies and lends support to the similarities of findings in the current project.

To address the current limitations and meaningfully extend this work, we look toward a number of future goals. As mentioned above, this work should be replicated with additional samples that display diversity in developmental stage, life experiences, and cultural upbringing. Extending the sample to other community adolescents and adults would also strengthen the current findings, as have previous efforts by researchers to understand self-compassion and well-being among community samples (Neff and Pommier 2013; Wei et al. 2011), the similarities of self-compassion in later adulthood (Allen et al. 2012), and trends of self-compassion between individuals in the United States, Thailand, and Taiwan (Neff et al. 2008). Such comparisons could also provide additional insights for subjective happiness, which has been addressed using non-college samples across the U.S. (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1997), though rich opportunities remain to consider populations beyond the U.S. Further, it would be worthwhile to consider additional tasks to implicitly test for self-compassion as well as other areas of SWB, collecting information on elicited self-compassion during setbacks in lab tasks, happiness following objectively neutral or ambiguous events, and perhaps implicit tests of subjective well-being. Additionally, longitudinal consideration of these variables would extend insight on the consistency of these outcomes and allow for tests of possible directionality among variables. As mentioned above, it would be worthwhile to understand whether improvements in subjective happiness can also contribute to promoted self-compassion among individuals, and whether, in line with broaden-and-build theory (Fredrickson and Branigan 2005), activities that promote positive affect could ultimately drive a mechanism that contributes to a cascade of improvements in happiness and self-compassion. In incorporating these methodological improvements, the use of the longer self-compassion scale with self-reports could provide a more nuanced consideration of items and provide opportunities to consider multiple factor arrangements of items that better explain which aspects of self-compassion closely align with subjective happiness and the associations between these constructs over time and across samples.

7 Conclusions

The current study had two major aims: (1) to test the direct associations of self-compassion with affective and cognitive dimensions of subjective well-being; and (2) to test whether self-compassion would be uniquely tied to each aspects of subjective well-being beyond demographics, trait gratitude, and the other aspects of subjective well-being (SWB). Study findings replicated previous direct associations of self-compassion with well-being. However, findings suggested that self-compassion was limited in being uniquely tied to most outcomes of SWB beyond the influence of robust covariates (i.e., gratitude) and other well-being areas. There was an exception for subjective happiness, which may share facets in adaptive ways of evaluating events and relating constructively to the self and to others. Explored models suggested the self-compassion may be indirectly tied to other aspects of well-being via subjective happiness and that future considerations should consider the possible causal effects of earlier SWB with improvements in subjective happiness and self-compassion. Additional studies should expand on these efforts by testing more inclusive samples and addressing longitudinal directionality among these constructs.