The Role of Self-Compassion on Psychological Well-Being and Life Satisfaction of Vietnamese Undergraduate Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Hope as a Mediator

Minh Anh Quang Tran; Bassam Khoury; Nguyen Ngoc Thao Chau; Manh Van Pham; An Thien Nguyen Dang; Tai Vinh Ngo; Thuy Thi Ngo; Trang Mai Truong; Anh Khuong Le Dao

doi:10.1007/s10942-022-00487-7

The Role of Self-Compassion on Psychological Well-Being and Life Satisfaction of Vietnamese Undergraduate Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Hope as a Mediator

J Ration Emot Cogn Behav Ther. 2022 Oct 29:1-19. doi: 10.1007/s10942-022-00487-7. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Minh Anh Quang Tran¹, Bassam Khoury², Nguyen Ngoc Thao Chau^{3

4}, Manh Van Pham⁵, An Thien Nguyen Dang⁶, Tai Vinh Ngo⁶, Thuy Thi Ngo⁷, Trang Mai Truong⁸, Anh Khuong Le Dao⁹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, National Cheng Kung University, No.1, University Road, Tainan City, 701 Taiwan (R.O.C.).
² Epartment of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Education Building, 3700 McTavish St (Room 614), Montreal, QC H3A 1Y2 Canada.
³ University of Economics and Law, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
⁴ Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
⁵ Department of Physical Therapy, Hai Duong Medical Technical University, Hai Duong City, Vietnam.
⁶ Department of Psychology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
⁷ Department of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.
⁸ Department of Psychology, Ha Noi City University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ha Noi, Vietnam.
⁹ College of Medicine, International Health Program, National Yang-Ming Chiao-Tung University, Taipei City, Taiwan.

Abstract

The simultaneous occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to adulthood have posed particular obstacles to university students' mental health. However, it remains unclear whether hope promotes mental health in the relationship between self-compassion, psychological well-being, and life satisfaction. Therefore, this study investigated the role of hope as a mediator in the relationship between self-compassion, psychological well-being, and life satisfaction among Vietnamese undergraduate students in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants consisted of 484 students (aged 18-24) from several universities in Vietnam. To measure the four variables in the research model, we opted for the Self-Compassion Scale, the State Hope Scale, the World Health Organization 5-item Well-Being Index, and the Satisfaction With Life Scale. The results showed that (1) self-compassion was significantly positively correlated with psychological well-being, (2) self-compassion was not correlated with life satisfaction, (3) hope was a mediator of the relationship between self-compassion and psychological well-being, and (4) hope was a mediator of the relationship between self-compassion and life satisfaction. These findings suggest interventions on self-compassion to enhance hope and subsequently increase students' mental health, which offers colleges, psychologists, and psychiatrists a guideline to cope with harmful psychological implications during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; Hope; Life satisfaction; Psychological well-being; Self-compassion.

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