Going for broke: Self-compassion, risky decision-making, and differences in problem gambling severity among undergraduates

Abstract

Although self-compassion is adaptive in coping with past mistakes, few studies have examined its relationship to future risks. In gambling, self-compassion toward possible losses could lead to greater or lesser risk-taking, and the direction of this relationship could depend on the presence of problem gambling. Across 3 laboratory studies, using multi-level modeling, this research tested how self-compassion relates to the progression of risk-taking in gambling games, and whether problem gambling severity moderates this relationship. Results showed that self-compassion has little relationship to gambling decisions by those with no signs of problem gambling already, and that higher self-compassion is associated with more risk-taking by those with any prior signs. The findings reveal a complex relationship of self-compassion to risk and well-being. .