A new study, "The three circle model of compassion focused therapy: An experimental paradigm to assess dynamic psychophysiological changes of emotion regulation systems", published in Behaviour Research and Therapy and authored by Dr Dylan Moloney-Gibb, Dr Chase Sherwell, Dr Sasha Lynn and Associate Professor James Kirby, tackles a long-standing challenge: the "three circle" model at the core of Compassion Focused Therapy, made up of threat, drive and soothing systems, shifts moment to moment, which makes it hard to measure as it actually happens.
To capture that movement, the team designed an experimental paradigm with 88 adults aged 18 to 30. Participants first completed baseline measures of self-compassion, fears of compassion, and difficulties in emotion regulation, then moved through rest, rumination and recovery phases alongside a compassionate imagery exercise. Throughout, the researchers recorded heart rate variability (HRV) and asked participants to rate their state on the Digital Three Circles Scale (d3CS).
The results lined up with the model's predictions. The circles moved in the expected direction for each task, HRV rose during recovery after rumination, and the balance of soothing relative to threat and drive tracked those changes in HRV. Together, the findings offer evidence that the tripartite model is a meaningful target in Compassion Focused Therapy, and that it can be measured using the d3CS.
