Commentary Regarding Wilson et al. (2018) 'Effectiveness of ‘Self-Compassion’ Related Therapies: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.” All Is Not as It Seems
Journal article
Authors | Kirby, J and Gilbert, Paul |
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Abstract | This commentary paper reviews the recently made claims by Wilson et al. (Mindfulness, 2018) from their meta-analysis of what they call self-compassion therapies. They argue that a range of different therapy modalities can be classified as self-compassion therapies, including compassion-focused therapy, dialectical behaviour therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy and mindfulness-based interventions. The results from their meta-analyses found that these self-compassion therapies were effective at increasing self-compassion and reducing depressive and anxiety symptoms. This meta-analysis also found that self-compassion-related therapies did not produce better outcomes than active control conditions. This indicates that such self-compassion therapies are unlikely to have any specific effect over and above the general benefits of any active treatment. We will indicate a number of reasons why this conclusion is not warranted. We first contextualise what is meant by compassion-focused therapies, and we then discuss four key concerns: (1) the heterogeneity and classification of the “self-compassion therapies”; (2) the measure used to assess self-compassion; (3) the comparison to the active control conditions; and (4) the inaccurate comments made about the Kirby et al. (Behavior Therapy, 2017b) meta-analysis. Although it is encouraging to see the increasing number of randomised controlled trials, and now meta-analyses of compassion-focused therapies, the conclusions made by Wilson et al. (Mindfulness, 2018) in their meta-analysis are misleading. |
Keywords | Compassion; Compassion-focused therapy; Self-compassion; Meta-analysis |
Year | 2019 |
Journal | Mindfulness |
Publisher | Springer US |
ISSN | 1868-8535 |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-018-1088-8 |
Web address (URL) | http://hdl.handle.net/10545/623621 |
hdl:10545/623621 | |
Publication dates | 09 Feb 2019 |
Publication process dates | |
Deposited | 20 Mar 2019, 09:19 |
Accepted | 28 Dec 2018 |
Contributors | Compassionate Mind Research Group, School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane 4072, Australia and The University of Derby, Derby, UK |
File | |
File | File Access Level Open |
https://repository.derby.ac.uk/item/92253/commentary-regarding-wilson-et-al-2018-effectiveness-of-self-compassion-related-therapies-a-systematic-review-and-meta-analysis-all-is-not-as-it-seems
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