The mediating role of self-compassion and its components in the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and life satisfaction among Chinese medical students

Research shows that maladaptive perfectionism as a personality trait can result in a number of mental health problems and lowered life satisfaction levels. Since self-compassion has been demonstrated in numerous studies as an important emotional regulation resource and as an essential mental health protective factor, it is hypothesized that self-compassion may play a mediating role in the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and life satisfaction among medical students and we tried to explore this mediation by using a bi-factor model. In this cross-sectional study, 1653 Chinese undergraduate medical students (aged 17-26 years) completed questionnaires including the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS) maladaptive perfectionism subscales, the 26-item Self-Compassion Scale (SCS), the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) and demographic information. Mediation analysis showed that self-compassion as a general factor together with its two specific factors of self-kindness and mindfulness played a full mediating role in the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and life satisfaction among medical students. This study has important implications for medical education as it adds to the literature on further understanding of the mechanism underlying the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and life satisfaction in medical students.