Investigating the Relationship between Lack of Self-compassion and Social Support: The Mediating Role of Disease Awareness in Women with Autoimmune Diseases

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Alborz, Iran

2 Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

3 Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Kish International, Islamic Azad University, Kish, Iran

4 Department Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Background: Autoimmune diseases are more common in women than men, leading to increased vulnerability to mental health issues among women with these conditions.
 
Objectives: The present study aimed to assess how a lack of self-compassion and social support, combined with disease awareness, impacts women with autoimmune diseases.
 
Methods: This cross-sectional research was conducted using structural equation modeling. The research focused on women with a history of autoimmune diseases in Tehran between July and October 2023. A total of 141 women with autoimmune diseases were included in the study, confirmed by specialists in research hospitals using targeted sampling. Data collection tools included the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Self-Compassion Questionnaire, and the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. Descriptive statistics were conducted using SPSS software (version 27), while path coefficients between variables were analyzed using SmartPLS software (version 4). Sobel's test was employed to determine the significance of the mediator variable.
 
Results: The current study revealed that the absence of self-compassion negatively impacted social support significantly (β=-0.512; P<0.001). Moreover, the absence of self-compassion had a significant detrimental impact on disease awareness (β=-0.464; P<0.001). On the contrary, the lack of self-compassion had an adverse and significant impact on social support as affected by disease awareness (β=-0.166; P=0.001).
 
Conclusion: As evidenced by the results of this study, the absence of self-compassion leads to a decrease in social support among women with autoimmune diseases.
 

Keywords

Acknowledgments: The researchers are thankful to all the individuals who participated in the study, as their involvement was crucial for the research to be completed. The study was carried out following ethical guidelines and received approval from the appropriate authorities. Approval for the research was granted by the Ethics Committee of the Islamic University of Karaj branch (Code: IR.IAU.K.REC.1402.321). The study strictly followed ethical principles to protect the confidentiality and privacy of participants' data. 

 

Availability of data and materials: The data for the study can be obtained by getting in touch with the author either while submitting the study or after it has been published.

 

Conflicts of interests: The authors stated that they have no conflict of interest.

 

Consent for publication: By signing the Consent to Publish form and submitting it to the Publisher, the authors authorize the publication of their work.

 

Ethics approval and consent to participate: Approval for the research was granted by the Ethics Committee of the Islamic University of Karaj branch under the Ethics Code IR.IAU.K.REC.1402.321.The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki.

 

Financial disclosure: This study did not receive any funding.

 

Author contributions: L. R.N.: Contributed to the conception of the work, revising the draft; P.S.M.: Approving the final version of the manuscript, L. R.N.: Agreeing on all aspects of the work; A.E. and E. SH.: Contributed to the data analysis and interpretation, critical revision, and approval of the final version of the manuscript; A. E. and SH. K. V.: Contributed to acquiring data, drafting the manuscript, and approving the final version; P.S.M. and A. E.: Contributed to the conception and design of the study, critical revision, and approval of the manuscript's final version; SH. K. V.: Contributed to the conception and design of the study, data interpretation, drafting of the manuscript andcritical revision, and approval of final version.

 

Open Access Policy: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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Razavi International Journal of Medicine
Volume 13, Issue 1
special issue; Psychology in Health
March 2025
Pages 197-207

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