Compassion fatigue and satisfaction in post-earthquake psychosocial support providers: the roles of self-compassion, resilience, and mindfulness

Abstract

Earthquakes expose not only survivors but also support providers to significant psychological strain. Professionals delivering prolonged psychosocial support in post-disaster contexts may experience compassion fatigue, yet protective factors that enhance compassion satisfaction or reduce fatigue remain insufficiently examined. This study investigated the relationships among psychological resilience, mindfulness, compassion satisfaction, and compassion fatigue, and examined the mediating role of self-compassion in these associations. Participants were 125 psychosocial support providers (63 females, 62 males; M = 32.97, SD = 7.32) who delivered services following the 2023 T & uuml;rkiye-Syria earthquakes. Correlational analyses indicated that psychological resilience, mindfulness, and self-compassion were positively associated with compassion satisfaction and negatively associated with compassion fatigue. Mediation analyses further showed that self-compassion mediated the relationships between psychological resilience and compassion fatigue, and between mindfulness and compassion fatigue. These findings highlight the protective roles of psychological resilience, mindfulness, and self-compassion in promoting compassion satisfaction and mitigating compassion fatigue among psychosocial support providers working in post-disaster settings. The results provide implications for developing interventions to support the well-being of professionals delivering disaster-related mental health services.