(PS13-C75) Psychometric Properties and Correlates of the Self-compassion Scale – Short Form (SCS-SF) Among Young Adults with Psychosis and Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders

In recent years, self-compassion has received attention as a promising interventional target to regulate negative affect, reduce shame and self-criticism, and increase well-being (Leaviss & Uttley, 2015). Furthermore, a small, but growing, body of literature attests to the importance of self-compassion and the efficacy of compassion-focused interventions in recovery from psychosis and schizophrenia spectrum disorders (Ascone et al., 2016; Braehler et al., 2013; Waite et al., 2015). Despite this increased interest, there is a dearth of research attesting to the psychometric properties of widely used measures of self-compassion in adults with a primary psychotic disorder. Among a sample of 38 young adults with a schizophrenia spectrum or other psychotic disorder, we conducted a preliminary psychometric investigation of a self-report measure of self-compassion, the Self-Compassion Scale – Short Form (SCS-SF). An exploratory factor analysis using parallel analysis and oblimin rotation suggested a two-factor solution: a positive factor (self-compassionate responding) and a negative factor (self-uncompassionate responding). Both factors yielded good internal consistency at baseline, with Cronbach alpha values of .81 for the positive dimension and .88 for the negative dimension. Positive, self-compassionate responding was positively associated with resilience (r = .45, p = .004), quality of life (r = .39, p = .016), positive emotions (r = .48, p = .002), and inversely related to negative emotions (r = -.41, p = .011) and disorganization symptoms (r_s = -.34, p = .039). Negative, self-uncompassionate responding was positively related to perceived stress (r = .42, p = .009), negative emotions (r = .42, p = .009), and depression symptoms (r = .36, p = .028), and inversely associated with resilience (r = -.51, p = .001) and positive emotions (r = -.45, p = .005). Additional psychometric analyses are forthcoming. Although these findings require further testing in larger samples within a confirmatory factor analytic framework, they provide important preliminary insights into self-compassion as a dimensional construct that associates with key aspects of clinical and psychosocial recovery in psychosis.