Abstract Social workers in India play a critical role in supporting underserved communities and addressing social inequalities. They are frequently exposed to emotionally demanding situations, which can increase the risk of compassion fatigue. Identifying protective psychological factors such as altruism and cognitive hardiness is therefore essential. The present study was conducted to examine the relationship between altruism, cognitive hardiness, and compassion fatigue among Indian social workers. Social workers are regularly exposed to emotionally demanding situations, which may increase the risk of compassion fatigue. Therefore, identifying protective psychological factors such as altruism and cognitive hardiness is important.A total of 138 social workers participated in the study. A correlational research design was used. Altruism was measured using a 9-item scale, cognitive hardiness was assessed using a 15-item scale, and compassion fatigue was measured using a standardized compassion fatigue scale. The study tested three hypotheses: (1) altruism would be positively correlated with cognitive hardiness, (2) altruism would be negatively correlated with compassion fatigue, and (3) cognitive hardiness would be negatively correlated with compassion fatigue.The results revealed that altruism was not significantly related to cognitive hardiness. However, altruism showed a significant negative correlation with compassion fatigue. Cognitive hardiness demonstrated a moderate and highly significant negative correlation with compassion fatigue, indicating that higher hardiness is associated with lower compassion fatigue. The mean scores were 34.54 (SD = 3.68) for altruism, 30.70 (SD = 5.17) for cognitive hardiness, and 36.58 (SD = 7.02) for compassion fatigue.The results show that cognitive hardiness helps protect Indian social workers from compassion fatigue.