Associations between self-compassion and interpersonal behaviours among adolescents during COVID-19: examining the role of gender

Self-compassion is a predictor of healthy interpersonal outcomes. There is growing interest in comparing the role of self-compassion between males and females, particularly in adolescence, which marks a unique period of social development. Students from secondary schools were invited to complete questionnaires assessing self-compassion, interpersonal emotional regulation, relationship with parents, loneliness, peer problems, prosocial behaviours, and bullying experience. Baseline measurements coincided with the declaration of COVID-19 in Australia. Regression analyses were used to examine associations between self-compassion and measures of interpersonal behaviours, and the interaction of self-compassion and gender. Students (n = 553, 47% F, Mage 13.6) from 8 schools participated in this study. Regression models found self-compassion significantly associated with all interpersonal outcomes, except bullying perpetration. Self-compassion was significantly and positively associated with interpersonal regulation skills, perceiving parents as caring, and prosocial behaviour. Low self-compassion was associated with loneliness, perceiving parents as overprotective, peer problems, and bullying victimization. Boys reported significantly higher self-compassion than girls. Interaction results indicate that girls are more likely to bully when low in self-compassion, but not boys. Findings demonstrated that self-compassion is associated with interpersonal behaviours among adolescents, differing between genders. Future longitudinal research should explore the directionality of these associations. What is already known about this topic:Self-compassion is consistently linked to psychological wellbeing and studies have demonstrated a relationship between self-compassion and interpersonal behaviours among adolescence, despite the unique social climate during this life stage.During COVID-19, adolescents felt increased social anxiety and experienced relationship difficulties and loneliness.Limited research has investigated the relationship between self-compassion and interpersonal behaviours among girls and boys, despite the unique social climate of adolescence. Self-compassion is consistently linked to psychological wellbeing and studies have demonstrated a relationship between self-compassion and interpersonal behaviours among adolescence, despite the unique social climate during this life stage. During COVID-19, adolescents felt increased social anxiety and experienced relationship difficulties and loneliness. Limited research has investigated the relationship between self-compassion and interpersonal behaviours among girls and boys, despite the unique social climate of adolescence. What this study adds:This study found self-compassion was significantly associated with interpersonal emotion regulation, loneliness, parental relationship, peer problems, prosocial behaviours, and bullying victimisation.Girls were more likely to bully when low in self-compassion, but this finding was not present in boys. Girls reported lower self-compassion compared to boys.This study highlights the importance of considering gender when investigating adolescent wellbeing. This study found self-compassion was significantly associated with interpersonal emotion regulation, loneliness, parental relationship, peer problems, prosocial behaviours, and bullying victimisation. Girls were more likely to bully when low in self-compassion, but this finding was not present in boys. Girls reported lower self-compassion compared to boys. This study highlights the importance of considering gender when investigating adolescent wellbeing.