The indirect effect of compassion for others in the relationship between mindfulness and therapeutic presence

ABSTRACT

Objective

Therapeutic presence (TP) refers to the ability of the therapist to be present at physical, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual levels. It has been shown that dispositional mindfulness (DM) can predict the TP through its effect on self-compassion and empathy. The aim of the current study was to investigate the mediating role of compassion for others components, recognizing (REC) and tolerating distress (TOL), in the relationship between DM and the TP.

Methods

Therapists (n = 206) were assessed using self-report questionnaires of DM (Mindfulness Attention and Awareness Scale, MAAS), CFO (Sussex-Oxford Compassion for Others Scale, SOCS), and TP (Therapeutic Presence Inventory, TPI-T).

Results

The results show positive and significant relationships between DM, CFO components, and the TP. The mediation model was supported by the data and path analysis revealed the significant indirect effect of DM on TP via REC and TOL.

Conclusions

Therapists who have high DM might be more tolerant of and alert to patients’ suffering, and therefore report higher levels of TP.

Key Points

What is already known about this topic:

• (1) Geller and Greenberg (2002) developed a model of Therapeutic Presence that explores the ways in which psychotherapists establish a presence for themselves, their clients, and the therapeutic relationship.

• (2) Psychotherapist’s mindfulness has been shown to have positive implications for therapeutic presence in various respects.

• (3) Self-compassion in psychotherapists serves as an indirect pathway through which mindfulness influences therapeutic presence.

What this topic adds:

• (1) The dispositional mindfulness of psychotherapists is associated with higher levels of compassion toward others.

• (2) Therapeutic presence in psychotherapists is predicted by two dimensions of compassion for others: recognition of suffering and tolerance of uncomfortable emotions in others, along with dispositional mindfulness.

• (3) Levels of mindfulness attention and awareness may contribute to a therapist’s non-reactivity and presence by enabling the detection of distress and the capacity to tolerate suffering in others.

KEYWORDS:

• Compassion for others
• therapeutic presence
• dispositional mindfulness
• recognizing suffering
• tolerating distress

Compliance with ethical standards

This study was approved by the research ethics committee at the University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. All the procedures performed in the studies involving human participants were in terms of the ethical standards of the University of Tehran and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained.

Data availability statement

The obtained data in this study can be found at The Open Science Framework (https://osf.io/m3zud/files/).

Additional information

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, or publication of this article.