The role of volunteerism as a moderator in the relationship between attachment style and self-compassion

Self-compassion is the ability of an individual to approach himself with compassion and has an important contribution to psychological well-being. Insecure attachment styles negatively affect the level of self-compassion. The aim of this research is to determine whether volunteering activities have a moderator role on the relationship between insecure attachment and self-compassion levels. Within the scope of the research, 370 participants were reached through convenience sampling method. Self-Compassion Scale, Adult Scale of Parental Attachment Scale, Volunteering Questionnaire and Volunteer Functions Inventory were utilized to collect data from the participants. As a result of the correlation analysis, a positive correlation was found between secure attachment style and self-compassion levels, and a negative correlation was found between insecure attachment styles and self-compassion levels. As a result of the multiple regression analysis, it was observed that the time devoted to volunteering activities reduced the negative effect of insecure attachment on the level of self-compassion. There was no significant difference between the securely attached and insecurely attached groups in terms of volunteer motivations. Among those with insecure attachment, the moderator effect of volunteering was found to be stronger among those whose volunteer motivations were values and social, and the moderator effect of volunteering was weaker among those with protective motivations. The findings of the study, its contributions to the literature and its shortcomings are discussed.