Investigation of the Relationship Between Gender, Childhood Traumas, Meaning in Life, Self-Compassion and Resilience in Adults

Abstract

The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between gender, childhood traumas, meaning in life, self-compassion and resilience in adults. Participants consisted of 266 adults living in different cities of Turkey. The ages of the adults participating in this study ranged from 18-60, with an average age of 25.81 years. Participants answered a questionnaire consisting of demographic information form, Childhood Traumas Scale, Meaning in Life Scale, Self-Compassion Scale and Brief Resilience Scale. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation analysis, multiple regression analysis and relative importance analysis. Results of this study suggested that gender and childhood traumas were not significant predictors of resilience among adults. However, meaning in life and self-compassion were found to be positive predictor of resilience in adults. On the other hand, the results of the relative importance analyses consistently showed that the most important predictor of resilience in adults is self-compassion, and this variable alone explains 88% of the explained variance rate by the regression equation. Mental health professionals can increase the effectiveness of their services by focusing on increasing their clients' levels of self-compassion and meaning in life in mental health interventions aimed at improving the resilience of adults.