Self-compassion and the need for approval are among the key determinants of individuals’ well-being, whereas family functioning can have far-reaching impacts on the lives of individuals. However, there is a substantial dearth of literature aimed at studying the relationships among these. The present study examined the influence of family functioning on self-compassion and the need for approval as well as studied the gender differences among these variables. A total of 241 participants belonging to the age group of 20–35 years filled out the GF-12 subscale of the McMaster FAD, the Self Compassion Scale Short Form and the shortened form of the revised version of the Martin Larsen Approval Motivation scale. Results revealed that while family functioning predicts both self-compassion and the need for approval, gender differences were shown only in family functioning. The findings have applications ranging from therapy to organisational settings.