”När solstrålarna från kärleksfull vänlighet möter lidandets tårar bildas en regnbåge av medkänsla” : En kvalitativ studie där socionomstudenter utforskar fenomenet compassion fatigue

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this study was to get a better understanding of how students within the BSc. program in social work at Lund University perceive the phenomena of compassion fatigue and self-compassion in relation to themselves and their preparedness to entering the labor market. Using semi-structured group interviews, this study first compiled the students’ perception and then analyzed it thematically to identify themes, which were: previous knowledge, education, concerns for their future position in the labor market, personality traits, experience of compassion fatigue, resilience and self-compassion. These themes were then analyzed through the lenses of the “vulnerability-stress model” and Hochshild’s version of “emotional labor”. Concretely, the study illustrated that the students have a lack of tools to manage their mental wellbeing and prevent compassion fatigue from occurring. Furthermore, most interviewees expressed the desire for the topic of compassion fatigue to be incorporated into the program’s curriculum, for example in the form of a lecture, as opposed to it being mentioned sporadically within different courses. Regarding self-compassion, however, viewpoints were more diverging. While there was broad agreement on the fact that being able to have self-compassion is valuable not only for social workers but also for any other individual, there was disagreement on whether the topic of self-compassion needed to be incorporated into the program as a standalone course; most interviewees were hesitant and indicated that doing so might lead to the program turning into a self-help course.