Feeling small but still connected: examining complex effects of Awe on self-compassion

Having a self-compassionate attitude is linked to positive psychological functioning, making it important to identify experiences that promote self-compassion. Several self-transcendent experiences and emotions (e.g., mindfulness), have been shown to predict self-compassion. As awe is considered a self-transcendent emotion, we examined awe as a potential elicitor of self-compassion. This investigation aligns with recent and rapidly growing interest in awe’s intrapersonal consequences. In the present work, we conducted three studies to investigate the relationship between dispositional (Study 1), and experimentally-induced (Study 2 and 3) awe and self-compassion. A correlational relationship between awe proneness and trait self-compassion was observed in Study 1 ( N