Self-Care Behaviors, Self-Compassion and Life Satisfactionin Clinical Psychologist

Abstract

Introduction. The growing relevance of psychological well-being in mental health professionals has led to the identification of key variables that influence their quality of life and prevent burnout, particularly in a profession that faces high levels of stress and emotional exhaustion. Therefore, the objective of this study was to analyze the role of self-care behaviors and self-compassion in predicting life satisfaction in clinical psychologists.
Method. The non-probabilistic sample was composed of 105 clinical psychologists from Argentina, of both sexes, aged between 23 and 69 years (SD=10.16). Of the participants, 77.1% were women (n=81) and 22.9% were men (n=24). Therapists completed the Self-Care Behavior Scale for Clinical Psychologists (EAP), the Brief Self-Compassion Scale (SCS - SF) and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS).
Results. Block regression analysis showed that the general model explained 21% of the variance in life satisfaction. Self-care behaviors explained 7% of the variance in the first block, while self-compassion added 13% in the second block. The variables age, years of experience and number of patients per week added only 1% of variance in the third block. In summary, the variable with the highest predictive weight was the mindfulness vs. over-identification of self-compassion subscale (β=0.39, p=0.006), followed by self-care behaviors (β=0.20, p=0.028).
Conclusions. These findings reinforce the importance of self-care and self-compassion, particularly in its mindfulness component, as key factors for life satisfaction in clinical psychologists. Promoting these practices could contribute significantly to well-being and burnout prevention in this professional group.