Searching for right mood: Will self-comforting, coping scale fill the gap?
By Stephen Adeleye, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
In a world full of disasters, hunger, sickness, deaths and other forms of physical and emotional deprivations, comforting oneself becomes an onerous task.
In spite of words of comfort from friends and relations, individuals faced with these situations have to dig deep to find self-soothing actions, otherwise known as self-comforting behaviours to overcome their emotional challenges.
Some of these activities include listening to music, watching movies, taking a stroll in the park, reframing negative thoughts to positive ones.
Others resort to religious and emotional outlets such as yoga, praying and singing to overcome their emotional challenges.
Willem Sleegers and Travis Proulx, Department of Social Psychology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, Netherlands, gave insights.
“People maintain systems of beliefs that provide them with a sense of belongingness, control, identity, and meaning, more generally,’’ they said.
Their position is contained in their study entitled: “The comfort of approach: self-soothing effects of behavioral approach in response to meaning violations.’’
However, many other victims of emotional crisis turn to what experts describe as pathological self-soothing to seek comfort.
These behaviours find expressions in binge drinking and eating, gambling, gaming, sex addiction; some even go as far as substance abuse.
Asmir Gracanin and a team of psychology scholars in a study found that given the parallels between self-soothing behaviors in humans and animals, crying might self-soothe.
The research tagged ”is Crying a Self-Soothing Behaviour’’ was published in Frontiers in Psychology.
As psychology scholars continue to navigate through the intricate world of self-comforting, a UK-based Nigeria academic, Dr Kennedy Obohwemu, recently announced the development of Self-Comforting and Coping Scale (SCCS), breakthrough in self-comforting research.
This is considered a landmark advancement in psychological assessment.
According to Obohewemu, his discovery is a revolutionary psychometric tool designed to empirically measure self-comforting behaviours.
Experts say Obohwemu’s innovative research breakthrough provides the first comprehensive and standardised framework for assessing an individual’s ability to self-soothe.
According to them, the research offers unprecedented insights into the complex dynamics of emotional regulation.
They say Obohwemu’s effort also offers a scientifically validated instrument that measures self-comforting behaviours and lays the foundation for an emerging psychological theory—the Self-Comforting and Coping Theory (SCCT).
Obohwemu’s Self-Comforting and Coping Theory posits that individuals who actively engage in self-comforting practices are more likely to demonstrate adaptive coping, reducing stress-induced dysfunction and promoting long-term psychological resilience.
“With far-reaching implications for mental health diagnosis, treatment and research, the SCCS is projected to transform the public understanding of coping mechanisms and empower clinicians, researchers and individuals to cultivate more effective emotional resilience strategies.
“The SCCS, developed through rigorous scientific methods, captures 13 distinct dimensions of self-comforting behaviours, including cognitive reframing, mindfulness, goal adjustment and self-compassion.’’
Unlike existing measures which focus on broad coping strategies, the SCCS offers a highly specialised assessment of self-soothing behaviours that influence emotional resilience, psychological stability and overall well being.’’
The outcome of the study was published in Global Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, one of the leading in social sciences.
Dr Gbenga Alimi appraised Obohwemu’s efforts.
He said by developing the SCCS, Obohwemu has taken the lead in the search for a new psychological approach in the quest for understanding how self-comforting behaviours interact with resilience mechanisms and emotional wellbeing.
Obohwemu, meanwhile, described self-comforting as an overlooked but fundamental dimension of coping.
“With the SCCS and SCCT, we are not just measuring behaviour—we are redefining how we understand emotional self-regulation and psychological resilience.”
“The SCCS is poised to revolutionise multiple fields, including clinical psychology, education, occupational health and personal development.
“It offers psychologists a powerful new tool for assessing adaptive vs. maladaptive self-comforting strategies, allowing for targeted interventions in mental health treatment.
“Educators and workplace leaders can also benefit from the SCCS by identifying effective self-soothing strategies among students and employees, fostering emotional wellbeing, and preventing burnout,’’ he said.
Experts say the scale’s diverse applicability across clinical, academic and organisational settings underscores its potential to reshape how we approach stress management and resilience-building in everyday life.
Obohwemu acknowledges the limitations of his work and expects further studies to do justice to unanswered questions.
According to him, future research will expand on the SCCS by exploring its applications in diverse populations, conducting longitudinal studies, and further refining the SCCT.
“Additionally, cross-cultural validation will ensure that the SCCS remains globally applicable, addressing cultural variations in self-soothing behaviours.
“The introduction of the SCCS and SCCT marks a transformative moment in psychological science, bringing much-needed attention to self-comforting as a critical aspect of mental health,” Obohwemu said.
Psychologists say for mental health professionals, educators and researchers, the SCCS is more than just a scale—it is a game-changer.
Experts advise that that self-soothing should not be a substitute for seeking professional help when needed.(NANFeatures)
***If used, please credit the writer and the News Agency of Nigeria.
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