Self-Compassion as a Resource in the Self-Stigma Process of Overweight and Obese Individuals
Open accessAbstract
Objective: Self-stigma in overweight and obese individuals has strong associations with impairment in mental and global health. This study sought to explore self-compassion as a psychological resource in the self-stigma process. Methods: In a 2012 representative German population survey of N = 1,158 overweight and obese individuals, self-compassion was examined as a mediator between self-stigma and mental and physical health outcomes, including BMI (kg/m 2), using structural equation modeling and controlling for sociodemographic factors. Results: Psychological variables were assessed using validated self-report questionnaires. Self-compassion partially mediated the relationships between self-stigma and depression, somatic symptoms, and health status / quality of life, lowering the predictive effect of self-stigma on the outcomes by approximately one-third. In contrast, self-compassion, because it was unrelated to BMI, did not mediate the association between self-stigma and BMI. Conclusion: Self-compassion has the potential to act as a buffer against the mental and global health detriments of self-stigma in overweight and obesity and could thus represent a target for interventions to reduce self-stigma and prevent these health impairments. In order to influence the association between self-stigma and BMI, self-compassion should conceptually be linked to weight management.
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Enhancing PPWB may improve positive health behaviors and buffer the effects of negative self-beliefs and negative health outcomes in women with obesity, but the evidence to support this is limited.
“Enhancing PPWB may improve positive health behaviors and buffer the effects of negative self‐beliefs and negative health outcomes in women with obesity 9 , 12 , 13 but the evidence to support this is limited.”
From Positive psychological well-being in women with obesity: A scoping review of qualitative and quantitative primary research (2022) · cites this paper as [12]
The Discussion (page unavailable) says self-compassion may buffer the mental and global health effects of weight self-stigma, possibly with greater relevance for women. But the study examined overweight and obese people of both sexes, did not show that enhancing positive psychological well-being improves health behaviors, and found that positive self-compassion alone did not act as a protective resource. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredResearchers suggest that positive emotions may improve negative self-beliefs and health.
“Researchers suggest that positive emotions may improve negative self‐beliefs and health. 9 , 12 , 13”
From Positive psychological well-being in women with obesity: A scoping review of qualitative and quantitative primary research (2022) · cites this paper as [12]
The Discussion (page unavailable) suggests that self-compassion may buffer the mental and general health effects of weight self-stigma. It does not show that positive emotions improve negative self-beliefs or health: the reported protective effect was associated with less self-judgment and related negative processes, while positive self-compassion alone did not act as a resource. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredHigher levels of self-compassion are significantly associated with lower levels of self-stigma.
“and self‐stigma (Hilbert et al. 2015).”
From The Mechanisms Underlying the Relationship Between Self‐Compassion and Psychological Outcomes in Adult Populations: A Systematic Review. (2025) · cites this paper as Hilbert et al. 2015
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“In fact, those who suffer from weight self-stigma have negative beliefs about themselves, experience negative feelings, and isolate themselves as a result (Hilbert et al., 2015).”
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“Empirical findings indicate that higher levels of self‐compassion are significantly associated with greater authenticity (Chew and Ang 2023) and lower levels of contingent self‐worth (Neff et al. 2018) and self‐stigma (Hilbert et al. 2015).”
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“For the victims of weight-based mistreatment, offering compassion and kindness in the face of mistreatment is clearly needed as they receive censure from both themselves and Western culture at large (Hilbert et al., 2015).”
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“compassion in the relationship between WBI and outcomes such as health-related quality of life, depression, and somatic symptoms in individuals with higher BMIs [35].”
BackgroundInfluentialSelf-compassion as an antidote to self-stigma and shame in autistic adults
Riebel, M., Bureau, R., Rohmer, O., Clément, C., & Weiner, L. (2025) · Autism · doi:10.1177/13623613251316965 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
“Self-compassion could therefore be associated with reduced self-stigma and decreased negative outcomes (Hilbert et al., 2015).”
Carels, R. A., Miller, J. C., Shonrock, A. T., Byrd, R., & Haley, E. N. (2021) · Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science · doi:10.1016/j.jcbs.2021.07.005 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Addressing Shame Through Self Compassion
Cepni, A. B., Hayle, Y., Irshad, A. M., Yoe, G. K., & Johnston, C. A. (2024) · American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine · doi:10.1177/15598276241292993 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Meneguzzo, P., Cazzola, C., Buscaglia, F., Pillan, A., Pettenuzzo, F., & Todisco, P. (2025) · Journal of Eating Disorders · doi:10.1186/s40337-025-01249-3 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Brenton-Peters, J., Consedine, N. S., Cavadino, A., Roy, R., Ginsberg, K. H., & Serlachius, A. S. (2023) · British Journal of Health Psychology · doi:10.1111/bjhp.12686 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Grover, S., & Sahoo, S. (2023) · Indian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.4103/indianjpsychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_486_22 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
“[71] Some of the commonly recommended strategies for reducing self-stigma include improving self-esteem, self-efficacy, empowerment, and self-compassion [72] [Table 10].”
Correlation of Stigma with Self-compassion in Patients with Bipolar Disorder
Ranjbar, M., Seyedfatemi, N., Mardani‐Hamooleh, M., Esmaeeli, N., & Haghani, S. (2020) · Iran Journal of Nursing · doi:10.29252/ijn.32.122.1 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Piloting “From the Inside Out” — a toolkit addressing tuberculosis-related self-stigma
Macdonald, S. H.-F., France, N. F., Hodgson, I. J., Ali, F., Dewi, C., Abdurrakhman, I., Runtu, Y. M., Juan, A., Sugiharto, J., Byrne, E., et al. (2024) · BMC Global and Public Health · doi:10.1186/s44263-024-00062-5 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
“This in itself is a valuable finding since self-compassion may act as a buffer against self-stigma [23, 54].”
BackgroundHilbert, A. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-63544-5_62 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Self-citationEffect Of 12 Station Circuit Training On Antopometry Obesity (Case Study)
Samodra, Y. T. J. (2020) · JP JOK (Jurnal Pendidikan Jasmani Olahraga dan Kesehatan) · doi:10.33503/jp.jok.v4i1.1125 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Jeziorek, A., & Riazi, A. (2022) · Journal of Personalized Medicine · doi:10.3390/jpm12091504 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“SC is associated with less negative attitudes towards overeating following an unsuccessful diet [9], less weight stigma [10], and decreased binge eating [11].”
BackgroundInfluentialToshi, K., Nakanishi, M., Sakai, M., & Yoshii, H. (2025) · Japan Journal of Nursing Science · doi:10.1111/jjns.12648 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“People with self-compassion showed lower levels of self-stigma (Hilbert et al., 2015; Wong et al., 2016).”
Social and Psychosocial Consequences of Obesity: Weight-Related Stigmatization and Discrimination
Hilbert, A. (2024) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-67662-2_62 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Self-citationThe impact of a focused listening experience on self-compassion and mental health help-seeking
McClymont, R. G., & Krause, A. E. (2025) · Psychology of Music · doi:10.1177/03057356251324825 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“Further research has suggested that self-compassion may influence the relationship between self-stigma and well-being (e.g., Hilbert et al., 2015; Mackali et al., 2023; Yang & Mak, 2017).”
Adipositas und Stigmatisierung
Hilbert, A., & Puls, H. (2018) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-57364-8_5 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Self-citationCoping with long-COVID stigma: The role of self-compassion and self-coldness
Shani, M., & Wübbelt, K. (2025) · Health Psychology Open · doi:10.1177/20551029251349409 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Brenton-Peters, J., Consedine, N. S., Cavadino, A., Roy, R., & Serlachius, A. S. (2022) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2021-056174 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Kullman, S. M., Chudyk, A. M., Ferguson, L. J., Beall, J., Hunter, V., Johnson, K., Mallatratt, A., Cabingan, M., Kowalski, K. C., & Strachan, S. M. (2025) · Qualitative Research in Sport Exercise and Health · doi:10.1080/2159676x.2025.2589103 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“Self-compassion can reduce the impact of stigma on difficult emotions among people with obesity (Hilbert et al. 2015) and those with stigmatised illnesses (Yang and Mak 2017).”
Hynes, M., Finucane, F. M., Collins, C., O’Brien, T., McAnena, O., O'Shea, G. E., Pilch, M., & McGuire, B. E. (2026) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0342744 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“The literature on shame and obesity has demonstrated that individuals living with obesity are often subjected to both external and internalised stigma [21].”
Manzoni, G. M., Tomba, E., Gardini, V., Cena, H., Schumann, R., Ballardini, D., Donini, L. M., Manzato, E., Gravina, G., Pauli, D. D., et al. (2026) · Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia Bulimia and Obesity · doi:10.1007/s40519-026-01818-8 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Psychological Approaches in the Treatment of Obesity
Snowdon‐Carr, V. (2018) · Endocrinology · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-47685-8_30-1 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Psychological Approaches in the Treatment of Obesity
Snowdon‐Carr, V. (2019) · Endocrinology · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-46933-1_30 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Adipositas und Stigmatisierung
Hilbert, A., & Puls, H. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-65556-6_5 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Self-citationPsychological variables, physical activity and physical education
(2023) · Frontiers research topics · doi:10.3389/978-2-8325-2387-2 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
The Effects of Self-Compassion on Internalised Weight-Based Stigma
Forbes, Y. (2020) · Griffith Research Online · doi:10.25904/1912/3364
Sager, K. L. (2019) · KU ScholarWorks (The University of Kansas)
(2021) · PeerJ · doi:10.7287/peerj.12591v0.1/reviews/2
“The predictive effect of self-stigma on psychological variables such as depression, somatic symptoms, health status or quality of life was reduced by self-compassion by approximately one-third in overweight and obesity (Hilbert et al., 2015).”
أبوبکر, أ. س. ص. (2022) · مجلة البحث في التربية وعلم النفس · doi:10.21608/mathj.2022.120538.1186
الوصمة المدركة وعلاقتها بالشفقة بالذات لدى آباء وأمهات التلاميذ ذوي الإعاقة العقلية
اللاه, ي. ع., سليمان, و., & عبدالله, س. (2023) · مجلة سوهاج لشباب الباحثين · doi:10.21608/sjyr.2023.291165
Macdonald, S. H.-F., France, N. F., Hodgson, I. J., Ali, F., Dewi, C., Abdurrakhman, I., Runtu, Y. M., Juan, A., Sugiharto, J., Byrne, E., et al. (2023) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-3181385/v1
Ortín, E. J. R., Hernández, S. O., Peña, J. L., & Cebamanos, M. A. (2024) · Retos · doi:10.47197/retos.v56.103506
Behrouzian, F., Rostami, H., Khalili, M. S., & Asl, E. M. (2024) · Jundishapur Journal of Chronic Disease Care · doi:10.5812/jjcdc-150067
Pirmoradi, M., Asgharzadeh, A., Birashk, B., Gharraee, B., Salehian, R., & Ostadrahimi, A. R. (2022) · Crescent Journal of Medical and Biological Sciences · doi:10.34172/cjmb.2023.25 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“…may not be enough, and targeting the psychological procedures involved in weight gain may substantially help develop a healthy and accepting relationship with eating, weight, and experiences associated with the weight to increase the life-quality among overweighed and obese individuals (10).”
Cygrymus, E. R., & Lent, R. W. (2025) · Journal of Career Assessment · doi:10.1177/10690727251325855
“Self-compassion-based interventions, which are conceptually consistent with body-acceptance coping, have been found to be associated with lower internalized weight stigma (e.g., Hilbert et al., 2015).”
Hope and Self-Compassion Mediate the Relationship Between Mental Health Literacy and Mental Health
de Carvalho, M. M., Vale-Dias, M. D. L., & Carvalho, S. A. (2025) · Journal of Prevention and Health Promotion · doi:10.1177/26320770241280575 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“Self-compassion has also been found to partially mediate the relationship between self-stigma and mental health in people with obesity (Hilbert et al., 2015).”
The effect of self-compassion on the level of stigma in individuals with substance use disorder
Özmen, E., & Yılmaz, E. (2025) · Journal of Substance Use · doi:10.1080/14659891.2025.2512522
“…and it has been underlined that as individuals raise their levels of self-compassion, their levels of internalized stigma fall, and that self-compassion acts as a protective shield in fighting against stigma (Braun et al., 2023; Brenton-Peters et al., 2021; Hilbert et al., 2015; Wong et al., 2019).”
Poole, L., & Hackett, R. A. (2025) · International Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1007/s12529-025-10421-7
“Opportunities to intervene with internalised weight stigma offer another avenue for future research, possibly through the use of cognitive behavioural therapy [63] or through therapy to enhance self-compassion [64, 65].”
Agyei, D.-G. N., Amponsah, B., & Tutu, A. O. (2026) · PLOS mental health. · doi:10.1371/journal.pmen.0000556
“It comprises three core components: self-kindness versus self-judgement, common humanity versus isolation, and mindfulness versus over-identification [23,25–27].”
Primanita, R. Y., Syafiyah, A. A., & Putra, A. Y. (2026) · PLOS mental health. · doi:10.1371/journal.pmen.0000609
“…evidence demonstrates that self-compassion significantly reduces body shame and body dissatisfaction by disrupting cycles of harsh self-criticism, thereby enabling individuals to maintain self-acceptance even when their physical condition does not conform to pre-vailing social ideals [31–33].”
Mindful eating moderates the link between self-compassion and body mass Index
Giannou, K., Köse, G., Huybrechts, I., Mantzios, M., & Mouratidou, T. (2026) · Nutrition and Health · doi:10.1177/02601060261463454
"You inevitably blame yourself": Autistic Adults' Experiences of Self-Compassion
Hartley, G., Sirois, F. M., & Purrington, J. (2026) · Mindfulness · doi:10.1007/s12671-026-02934-3
- Authors
- Hilbert, A., Braehler, E., Schmidt, R., Löwe, B., Häuser, W., & Zenger, M.
- Affiliations
- IFB Adiposity Diseases (DE)
- University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (DE)
- Klinikum Saarbrücken (DE)
- Leipzig University (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Hilbert, Anja
- Venue
- Obesity Facts
- Publisher
- S. Karger AG
- Published
- 2015
- Volume
- 8
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 293-301
- ISSN
- 1662-4025 (ISSN-L)
- 1662-4033
- PMC
- PMC5644803
- OpenAlex
- W2177040549
- Cited by
- 89
- References
- 45
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 10.94
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Obesity Facts (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- mediaTUM (Technical University of Munich) (submittedVersion)
- Qucosa (Saxon State and University Library Dresden) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (01EO1001)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Pharmacy › Obesity and Health Practices
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Keywords
- self-compassion, self-stigma, overweight, obesity, depression, somatic symptoms, health status, quality of life, body mass index, mediation, psychological resources, weight management
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Depression, Empathy, Female, Health Status, Humans, Male, Obesity, Quality of Life, Self Concept, Stereotyping, Body Mass Index, Overweight, Young Adult, Self Report
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