Compassion‐focused therapy: Preface and introduction for special section

I am delighted to welcome you to this short, special edition on compassion-focused therapy (CFT). One of the core principles of CFT is that it is rooted in clinical science rather than any particular approach to therapy. If we use psychological science to better understand the way the brain evolved, functions, and can create mental health problems, we can begin to target and develop therapeutic interventions based on that science. Indeed, clinical psychology is at a point where it can begin to be less focused on allegiance to particular schools of therapy and root itself in basic science. We can distinguish the science of process from the science of intervention because they have not developed in tandem. There is considerable evidence now that a whole range of interventions that involve: developing an appropriate and supportive therapeutic relationship, creating opportunities for guided discovery and behavioural experiments, gradual exposure for avoided situations and emotions, practising imagery, learning behavioural and emotional regulation skills – to name a few – play a central role in the personal change and recovery journey. However, CFT suggests that how individuals engage in these processes can play a big role in their willingness to engage with them and how effective they are. Compassion-focused therapy highlights the fact that if we look at the evolution of our minds then one thing stands out above all else – the human brain evolved for social processing (Cozolino, 2007, 2008; Siegel, 2012). Over 100 millions years ago, the advent of the mammalian ‘caring for offspring’ and group living introduced a whole range of emotion regulation processes that work through relationships – one of which was obviously the attachment system and capacity for affiliation and caring (Carter, 1998; Porges, 2007). Much of our evolution of intelligence was driven by social challenges and our cognitive architecture is adapted for social processing (Dunbar, 2010). Social relationships matter immensely to our well-being in many ways. For example, the extent anddegree of affiliation thatweexperience from the daywe are born to the day thatwedie has a huge impact on the quality of our lives (Cozolino, 2007, 2008). Affiliative processes influence the architecture of our motivational and emotional systems and even influence genetic expression (Belsky & Pluess, 2009; Siegel, 2012). So, if we put the capacity for affiliation central to the regulation of mind this directs attention to how people can experience kindness and affiliation from others, show kindness, empathy and affiliation toothers and relate tooneself in thoseways. Problems in any of these areas can spell trouble. Indeed, it was problems with being open and