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The relationship between multidimensional perfectionism and contingencies of self-worth
Abstract
Research suggests that while socially prescribed perfectionism has a robust association with psychological difficulties, self-oriented perfectionism may be best considered a vulnerability factor ( and ). One explanation for their divergent consequences is that these dimensions of perfectionism are underpinned by different contingencies of self-worth. The purpose of the current study was to examine this possibility. Two-hundred and thirty-eight undergraduate students (age M = 18.94, SD = 1.33, range 18–25). completed measures of perfectionism (self-oriented and socially prescribed) and contingencies of self-worth (based on outperforming others, approval of others, and personal competence). Consistent with the hypotheses, regression analyses revealed that socially prescribed perfectionism was predicted by contingencies of self-worth based on outperforming others and the approval of others, whereas self-oriented perfectionism was predicted by contingencies of self-worth based on outperforming others and personal competence. The results suggest that the nature of the contingencies of self-worth associated with these dimensions of perfectionism may be important when considering their relationship with psychological maladjustment.
... Adapting to pressure and effectively managing anxiety lessens the impact and occurrence of choking [54][55][56]. Furthermore, conditioning athletes to perform under pressure in both simulated and actual situations is a commonly used strategy, along with the use of graded pressure situations during practice [56][57][58][59][60]. Additionally, trust monitoring-developing confidence in one's athletic routine-can mitigate the debilitating effects of pressure. ...
... Examples of mental preparation include relaxation exercises, thoughts and feelings of pressure management, pressure acceptance, and recalling reasons for playing the game [63]. Additionally, pre-performance routines (PPR)-the use of performance related thoughts and behaviors prior to performance-have been used as an immediate preparation technique to prevent choking [53,57,59,62,64]. The use of PPR can enhance focus, manage anxiety, and increase self-confidence and perceived control [59]. ...
... Additionally, pre-performance routines (PPR)-the use of performance related thoughts and behaviors prior to performance-have been used as an immediate preparation technique to prevent choking [53,57,59,62,64]. The use of PPR can enhance focus, manage anxiety, and increase self-confidence and perceived control [59]. An example of PPR is thinking of the word "relax" simultaneously with physical relaxation [62] and/or using imagery of the target tied to various positive scenarios [57]. ...
Strategies for addressing anxiety-related decrements in performance have been implemented across a variety of domains, including Sex, Sport, and Stage. In this review, we (1) iterate the dominant anxiety-related remediation strategies within each of these domains; (2) identify over-lapping and domain-specific strategies; and (3) attempt to unify the conceptualization of performance-related anxiety across these three areas under the information-processing framework of the Reflective/deliberative—Impulsive/automatic Model (RIM). Despite both diversity and similarity in remediation approaches across domains, we found that many strategies appear to share the common goal of maintaining a dominant automatic style of information processing in high performance demand situations. We then describe how various remediation strategies might hypothetically fit within the RIM framework and its subcomponents, identifying each intervention as falling into one or more broad categories related to achieving and/or maintaining dominance in automatic information processing. We conclude by affirming the benefit of adopting a unifying information-processing framework for the conceptualization of performance-related anxiety, as a way of both guiding future cross- and inter- disciplinary research and elucidating effective remediation models that share common pathways/mechanisms to improved performance.
... A gifted child's self-concept can influence this transformation of wishes and preferences to an absolute need for perfection. Perfection may be needed to maintain feelings of self-worth that are associated with a student's self-concept of academic competence and superiority [48,49]. However, such maintenance is an impossibility in most cases, leading to disappointing realities. ...
... 20). Moreover, Hill et al. explain that self-oriented perfectionists may use self-handicapping behaviors to protect their sense of self-worth, especially when they experience failure [48]. Consequently, underachievement and perfectionism may serve as defense mechanisms to avoid the risk of failing. ...
... The self-defeating thoughts of not being the best can lead a perfectionist to avoid challenging learning experiences altogether. Since the perfectionist's self-worth is highly associated with achievement [48], he or she might avoid experiences that involve risk [21,23]; thus, they are underachieving by means of avoidance. McCoach and Siegle examined differences between gifted achievers and gifted underachievers on five factors (Academic Self-Perception, Attitudes towards School, Attitudes towards Teacher, Motivation, and Goal Valuation) as measured by the School Attitude Assessment Survey-R [64,79]. ...
Perfectionism can influence how one approaches challenges and deals with setbacks, and, consequently, can inhibit or facilitate achievement. The present study (1) explored the relationship between Frost’s six dimensions of perfectionism and five types of coping strategies; (2) examined how dimensions of perfectionism predict coping in response to academic stress; and (3) investigated differences between gifted underachievers and other gifted students on perfectionism and coping among 130 American gifted students in grades 6–8. Results of stepwise regression models revealed approach coping was predicted by adaptive perfectionism (Positive Strivings-notably Organization), whereas avoidance coping (Internalizing, Externalizing, and Distancing) was predicted by various combined models. Gifted underachievers displayed lower Positive Strivings perfectionism scores and lower positive coping when compared to achievers. This information is helpful when considering ways to guide gifted students to high levels of academic achievement while utilizing adaptive approaches.
... Inherent in the concept of perfectionism is the belief that a standard must be met or exceeded. Though high standards are noble and worthy, for an unhealthy perfectionist, they are often associated with critically evaluating self-worth against these standards (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011;Speirs Neumeister, 2007). Rimm (2007) noted that healthy perfectionists are at risk for regressing to unhealthy perfectionism when they encounter more challenging curriculum or competition. ...
... Academically gifted students fall into this category (Moon, Brighton, Jarvis, & Hall, 2007). We cannot deny that the focus of education amidst current reform policies is on performance (Berger, 2013;Gandhi, 2013;Rich, 2013), and perfectionistic students may measure their self-worth based on said performance (Hill et al., 2011;Speirs Neumeister, 2004a;Wang, Fu, & Rice, 2012). Though causal inferences cannot be made, the prevalence of unhealthy perfectionism in the present study may relate to the high accountability climate (Basol & Zabun, 2014;Ho, 2004;Moon, Brighton, & Callahan, 2003;Nichols & Berliner, 2005). ...
... Findings warrant proactive attention to addressing perfectionism. Students need to understand that though it is healthy to set high personal standards, it is not healthy to associate self-worth with attainment of these standards (Hill et al., 2011); thus, teachers can help students develop appropriate goals and necessary organizational skills to achieve these goals. Objectives of affective curriculum should include enhancing positive aspects (Personal Standards and Organization) while decreasing critical selfevaluative tendencies. ...
Researchers explored the typology of perfectionism among 153 (46% male, 54% female; 88% White, 8% African American, 5% Asian American, 4% Hispanic, 1% Other) suburban gifted adolescents and compared perfectionism scores (using the Goals and Work Habits Survey, a modification of Frost’s Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale [F-MPS]) to samples of gifted students from previous studies. Nonhierarchical k-mean cluster analyses revealed a three-type classification of unhealthy, functional, and nonperfectionists; unhealthy perfectionists displayed higher levels of avoidance internalized coping than functional perfectionists, but functional perfectionism was not differentiated by approach-oriented coping. Sample t-tests revealed that the present sample had significantly higher scores of perfectionism (especially unhealthy dimensions) than previous studies. Plausible explanations for higher perfectionism scores include the present educational climate and related cultural factors. Researchers recommend additional analyses of perfectionism among broader samples and enhancing the psychometric properties of the F-MPS, facilitating more practical application. Implications for addressing perfectionism are also discussed.
... 6,[12][13][14] e purpose of this study was to investigate the multidimensional construct of perfectionism, its relationship to a sense of overall selfconcept, and the mediating e ects of internalized shame on these variables in a group of elite dancers and a healthy control group. is study is based on theory and current research ndings that elevated perfectionism compromises a sense of overall selfconcept and associated self-esteem [15][16][17][18] and builds on a model that identies shame as the mediating variable between maladaptive perfectionism and depression. 19 We proposed that internalized shame would mediate perfectionism and self-concept. ...
... 47 In this study, the MPS scales had high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha): self ( = 0.88); other ( = 0.75); socially prescribed ( = 0.80). e Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (TSCS2), created by Fitts and Warren, 16 is an 82-item Likert scale (1 = always false to 5 = always true) multidimensional measure of self-concept and human behavior that takes approximately 15 minutes to complete. e TSCS2 is widely used in education, psychology, and the social and health sciences. ...
... is result supported the proposed model that elevated perfectionism compromises a sense of overall selfconcept, [15][16][17][18] and that shame is the mediating variable between perfectionism and self-concept. 20,21 This model is only accurate, however, for the group of dancers. ...
Perfectionism has been linked to various forms of physiological and psychological maladjustment. This study examined the inter-relationships between multi-dimensional aspects of perfectionism (self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed), internalized shame, and total self-concept
in elite dancers (N = 24) as compared to a control group of healthy, active non-dancers (N = 23). All participants completed psychometric self-report measures targeting the variables of interest. Multivariate analysis of covariance (gender as covariate) indicated that the dancers had higher
levels of self-oriented perfectionism than the control group. Building on the findings of Ashby, Rice, and Martin, we examined a model in which dancers' shame mediates the relationship between maladaptive aspects of perfectionism and self-concept. Analysis revealed internalized shame to fully
mediate the relationship between dancers' socially prescribed perfectionism and total self-concept; however, shame did not mediate self-concept in the control group. We conclude that dancers would benefit from programs that enhance self-esteem and reduce the negative effects of internalized
shame and self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism.
... First, drawing on Hewitt and Flett's (1991) multidimensional conceptualization of perfectionism, we sought to identify the specific dimension(s) of perfectionism that predict(s) eating disorder symptoms in college-aged women. Socially prescribed perfectionism involves the belief that self-worth is based on the attainment of externally imposed standards, while self-oriented perfectionism involves the belief that self-worth is based on the attainment of exceedingly high self-imposed standards [46,47]. Given that both self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism are characterized by a conditional sense of self-worth that is overly dependent on attaining high standards imposed by either the self or close others [47], we hypothesized that higher levels of self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism would independently serve as risk factors for eating disorder symptoms. ...
... Socially prescribed perfectionism involves the belief that self-worth is based on the attainment of externally imposed standards, while self-oriented perfectionism involves the belief that self-worth is based on the attainment of exceedingly high self-imposed standards [46,47]. Given that both self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism are characterized by a conditional sense of self-worth that is overly dependent on attaining high standards imposed by either the self or close others [47], we hypothesized that higher levels of self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism would independently serve as risk factors for eating disorder symptoms. ...
Given the inconclusive findings regarding the relation between perfectionism and eating disorder symptoms, it is important that we determine whether this relation is modulated by emotion dysregulation, which is a prominent risk factor for eating disorders. We sought to identify specific cognitive emotion regulatory strategies—rumination, self-blame, and catastrophizing—that interact with multidimensional perfectionism to shape eating disorder symptoms (i.e., shape, weight, eating concerns, and dietary restraint). Using latent moderated structural equation modeling, we analyzed data from 167 healthy young female adults. We found that only rumination significantly moderated the relation between socially prescribed perfectionism and eating disorder symptoms. However, this was not observed for self-oriented perfectionism or other regulatory strategies. These findings held true when a host of covariates were controlled for. Our findings underscore the crucial role of rumination, a modifiable emotion regulatory strategy, in augmenting the relation between socially prescribed perfectionism and eating disorder symptoms in young women.
... It may be that people with a high drive to BP engage in competition with others more often and thus have more opportunities of succeeding, which might in turn enhance self-worth. Interestingly, Hill et al. (2011) also found a relationship between perfectionism and the in the present used competition subscale. This shows convergent validity since the drive to BP and the subscales used by Hall et al. (2011) both correlate with the same construct. ...
... Interestingly, Hill et al. (2011) also found a relationship between perfectionism and the in the present used competition subscale. This shows convergent validity since the drive to BP and the subscales used by Hall et al. (2011) both correlate with the same construct. Lastly, people who distrust other people and try to master their lives themselves are more likely to bolster their self-worth from social competition. ...
Transactional Analysis assumes that subjective beliefs drive people to act ‘counter scripts’ acquired in childhood in interactions with significant others and that are associated with negative emotions. Those counterscript drivers motivate compensatory behaviors that offset adverse emotions. Given the lack of a theory-based, empirically validated instrument to assess counterscript drivers, we constructed in two studies a 14-item counterscript driver questionnaire. In Study 1 (N = 302) we developed from an initial pool of 144 driver statements in collaboration with 15 subject-matter experts a four factor driver solution via exploratory factor analysis approach. In Study 2 (N = 195), we validated the four factor structure of the drivers via confirmatory factor analysis approach. We then examined predictive validity by regressing the final Driver subscales on the Contingencies of Self-Worth scale (CSW Crocker, Luhtanen, Cooper, & Bouvrette, 2003) and the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS-A-17; de Graaf, Roelofs, & Huibers, 2009). Altogether, the questionnaire has acceptable to good psychometric properties and the four subscales representing the drives to “Try Hard”, “Be Perfect”, “Distrust Other People”, and to “Stay Positive” explaining 18-39 % of the variance of the external constructs. The Counterscript Driver questionnaire (CSD-14) may be used in various fields of psychology.
... In theoretical terms, perfectionism has been considered as the desire to attain high performance standards accompanied by the tendency to be unduly critical of one's own performance (Appleton, Hall, & Hill, 2009;Eusanio et al., 2014;Frost, Marten, Lahart, & Rosenblate, 1990;Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Ahmetoglu, Harding, Akhtar, and Chamorro-Premuzic (2015); Stoeber and Otto (2006);and Stoeber, Stoll, Pesheck, and Otto (2008) proposed that perfectionism has been conceptualized as a sort of multidimensional perfectionism that consists of setting excessively high standards for oneself, with those standards relating to concern for mistakes, uncertainty regarding actions and beliefs, and an overemphasis on order, organization, and neatness. ...
... According to the aforementioned studies, adaptive perfectionism could influence self-esteem in a way that drives a person to strive to accomplish ideals or goals (Eusanio et al., 2014;Hill et al., 2011;Koivula, Hassmén, & Fallby, 2002). Besides, previous studies have supported the notion that perfectionism can be a hindrance to creativity, those studies did not consider the previously established moderating effect of self-esteem. ...
Social cognitive theory has supported the view that perfectionism can be a hindrance to creativity, and also considers self-esteem to have a moderating effect on their relationship. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effect of self-esteem on the relationship between perfectionism and creativity in college dancers. Two hundred and sixty-six college dance students completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale of Frost, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and the New Test of Creative Thinking. The moderating effect was tested with a four-step moderated hierarchical regression analysis. Bivariate analyses showed that creative thinking was, as a dependent variable, significantly related to multidimensional perfectionism and self-esteem in college dancers. Additionally, the hierarchical regression analysis revealed that self-esteem moderated the association between multidimensional perfectionism and creative thinking after controlling for selected socio-demographic characteristics. It can thus be concluded that self-esteem might regulate the positive effect of multidimensional perfectionism on creative thinking. Professional dance instructors who are working with perfectionist dancers should, therefore, seek ways to improve dancers’ self-esteem as one of the strategies to improve their creative thinking.
... Approval-CSW shows a pattern of correlation with attachment styles that indicates considerable preoccupation with other people's feelings and approval, as well as disinclination to hostile and dismissive conduct (Park et al., 2004). In keeping with this, individuals with approval-CSW tend to show more perfectionism, but only to the extent that perfectionism is socially prescribed (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Approval-CSW promotes self-validation goals that pursue the positive views of others (Crocker, Brook, Niiya, & Villacorta, 2006). ...
... College students with competition-CSW had lower levels of trait agreeableness and spent less time socializing with others in their first semester at university . Individuals with competition-CSW also tend to be perfectionists because they hold rather high standards for themselves (Hill et al., 2011). Furthermore, competition-CSW is also linked to grandiose narcissism (Zeigler-Hill, Clark, & Pickard, 2008). ...
Customer mistreatment is a ubiquitous and pernicious form of interpersonal mistreatment leveled by customers against employees. Service workers’ reactions to customer mistreatment have been traditionally viewed as tit-for-tat reactions in which service workers respond to customers’ aggression with retaliation in kind. However, this tit-for-tat account does not capture the broad range of possible service worker responses to customer misbehavior. We build the case for self-esteem threat as an overarching framework for divergent employee reactions to customer mistreatment, and explain how service workers’ behavioral reactions and emotional labor may systematically vary according to where service workers stake their self-esteem—in performance, in others’ approval, or in status—using contingencies of self-worth theory. Other features of the self-concept are identified as boundary conditions of the process.
... On one hand, its subdimensions are likely to be associated with a greater sense of personal control and choice that is likely to contribute to more autonomous motivation in sport (Dunkley et al., 2000). On the other hand, perfectionistic strivings may be underpinned by more controlling factors, such as the fulfillment of contingencies of self-worth (DiBartolo, Frost, Chang, LaSota, & Grills, 2004;Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Consequently, perfectionistic strivings may be associated with higher levels of both autonomous motivation and controlled motivation in sport. ...
... Instead, the pathway from perfectionistic strivings to controlled motivation was nonsignificant, and the indirect effect was nonsignificant. Partial mediation via the two motivational pathways was initially hypothesized because the subdimensions of per-fectionistic strivings have been suggested to elicit a mixed pattern of motivation that includes controlled motivation (DiBartolo et al., 2004;Hill et al., 2011). Moreover, there is also some empirical evidence that suggests that this is the case (e.g., Gaudreau & Antl, 2008;McArdle & Duda, 2004;Mouratidis & Michou, 2011). ...
Certain dimensions of perfectionism appear to place junior athletes at greater risk of burnout. The current study adopted self-determination theory to explain why this is the case. Specifically, as athlete burnout is believed to have a motivational signature that can be described using motivational regulation, the study examined whether autonomous motivation and controlled motivation mediated the perfectionism–burnout relationship. Junior athletes (n = 211, M age = 15.61 years, s = 1.73) completed measures of multidimensional perfectionism, athlete burnout, and motivational regulation. Structural equation modeling revealed that autonomous motivation and controlled motivation partially mediated the relationship between perfectionism and burnout. Perfectionistic concerns had a positive direct and indirect (via controlled motivation) relationship with burnout. In contrast, perfectionistic strivings had a negative direct and indirect (via autonomous motivation) relationship with burnout. The findings suggest that perfectionistic concerns encompass a pattern of motivational regulation, which contributes to the occurrence of athlete burnout, whereas perfectionistic strivings encompass a pattern of motivational regulation inversely associated with athlete burnout.
... On one hand, its subdimensions are likely to be associated with a greater sense of personal control and choice that is likely to contribute to more autonomous motivation in sport (Dunkley et al., 2000). On the other hand, perfectionistic strivings may be underpinned by more controlling factors, such as the fulfillment of contingencies of self-worth (DiBartolo, Frost, Chang, LaSota, & Grills, 2004;Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Consequently, perfectionistic strivings may be associated with higher levels of both autonomous motivation and controlled motivation in sport. ...
... Instead, the pathway from perfectionistic strivings to controlled motivation was nonsignificant, and the indirect effect was nonsignificant. Partial mediation via the two motivational pathways was initially hypothesized because the subdimensions of per-fectionistic strivings have been suggested to elicit a mixed pattern of motivation that includes controlled motivation (DiBartolo et al., 2004;Hill et al., 2011). Moreover, there is also some empirical evidence that suggests that this is the case (e.g., Gaudreau & Antl, 2008;McArdle & Duda, 2004;Mouratidis & Michou, 2011). ...
Certain dimensions of perfectionism appear to place junior athletes at greater risk of burnout. The current study adopted self-determination theory to explain why this is the case. Specifically, as athlete burnout is believed to have a motivational signature that can be described using motivational regulation, the study examined whether autonomous motivation and controlled motivation mediated the perfectionism–burnout relationship. Junior athletes (n = 211, M age = 15.61 years, s = 1.73) completed measures of multidimensional perfectionism, athlete burnout, and motivational regulation. Structural equation modeling revealed that autonomous motivation and controlled motivation partially mediated the relationship between perfectionism and burnout. Perfectionistic concerns had a positive direct and indirect (via controlled motivation) relationship with burnout. In contrast, perfectionistic strivings had a negative direct and indirect (via autonomous motivation) relationship with burnout. The findings suggest that perfectionistic concerns encompass a pattern of motivational regulation, which contributes to the occurrence of athlete burnout, whereas perfectionistic strivings encompass a pattern of motivational regulation inversely associated with athlete burnout. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
... Based on this belief, they would think and behave in ways that generate stress . For instance, while others may consider their failure of job applications as inevitable consequences of a pandemic-related recession, socially prescribed perfectionists may deem those failures as a result of their own imperfection and experience reduced self-worth (Hill et al., 2011), which could lead to excessive rumination and self-criticism and, in turn, increased stress perception (Randles et al., 2010). ...
Emerging adulthood is a developmental period marked by numerous life transitions, leading emerging adults to be susceptible to distress and related psychological risks. The current study investigated the effects of socially prescribed perfectionism and parental autonomy support on psychological stress among emerging adults. We implemented a two-wave longitudinal design spanning a six-month period and latent moderation structural equations, based on data collected from 220 South Korean emerging adults (103 males, aged from 21 to 31 years). Our findings indicated that socially prescribed perfectionism predicted longitudinal increases in perceived stress, whereas parental autonomy support did not. Moderation analysis revealed that for those with high socially prescribed perfectionism, more parental autonomy support was related to greater increases in perceived stress. The results suggested that the effect of parental autonomy support may not be universally beneficial to children’s psychological distress. Rather, the effect might vary depending on cultural context and children’s individual differences.
... With two dimensions of perfectionism, the perfectionism diathesis-stress model has mostly examined the perfectionistic concerns factor as the indicator of perfectionism (Enns et al., 2005). This is because individuals with high perfectionistic concerns conditionally base their performance evaluation on external recognition (e.g., grade point average) or approval (Hill et al., 2011). Hence, they are likely to misinterpret neutral cues as stress and thereby intensify the stress. ...
With increasing mental health problems witnessed among students, adequately addressing their well-being is becoming important on college campuses. This study compares international and domestic graduate students in the USA on domains that are relevant to both student groups (perfectionistic personality, academic stress) and how these factors combinedly predict satisfaction with life. With 531 international and 359 domestic graduate students, results found support for perfectionism and academic stress predicting life satisfaction in both groups with notable similarities and differences. For perfectionists in both student groups, the level of academic stress was an important factor that determines satisfaction with life. Interestingly, for international students only, a perfectionism dimension that has been traditionally considered adaptive (“Standards”) functioned in a maladaptive way. Findings from this study suggest that international and domestic students share similarities and differences that should be noted.
... In study 5a, we test the hypothesis that the PEACE would negatively predict two aspects of contingencies of self-worth above and beyond the DPES-C. We selected concern for appearance and concern for approval from others because they are externally referenced and have been found to be the most strongly associated with lower levels of self-esteem and self-acceptance (Hill et al. 2011). We also hypothesized that PEACE would positively predict unconditional self-acceptance above and beyond the DPES-C. ...
Contentment is an emotion that arises from the perception of completeness in life. Through a series of validation studies, the purpose of this work was to develop a scale of dispositional contentment, The Positive Emotion Assessment of Contentment Experience (PEACE) Scale. The PEACE Scale demonstrated favorable psychometric properties, including single factor structure, high internal consistency (α = .93), temporal reliability (r = .86), and construct and predictive validity. Scores on the PEACE Scale were positively correlated with all Big Five personality traits except for neuroticism. Scores also correlated positively with unconditional self-acceptance, and negatively with depression, anxiety, and stress. In addition, high levels of contentment were predictive of lower materialism and greed. Potential uses of the scale are discussed.
... For example, Shih (2012) discovered that adaptive perfectionists displayed lower burnout levels and healthier patterns of engagement in schoolwork as compared to maladaptive perfectionists, leading to the latter's categorisation as an at-risk group. Therefore, perfectionism should be treated as a multidimensional personality trait, that is, one with both adaptive and maladaptive aspects (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). ...
Maladaptive perfectionism and controlled motivation are vulnerability factors for burnout. This study examined the relationships between two aspects of perfectionism (high standards, discrepancy), four academic motivational orientations (intrinsic, identified, introjected, extrinsic), and academic burnout. The target population was 12th graders in South Korea, and a total of 950 participants were recruited using cluster sampling. Data were collected from three waves of longitudinal study. In particular, the mediating role of academic motivation (T2) in the link between perfectionism (T1) and academic burnout (T3) was tested using structural equation modelling. The results indicated that introjected motivation mediated the relationship between perfectionism and burnout. Specifically, both high standards and discrepancy were positively associated with introjected motivation, and in turn, introjected motivation was positively associated with burnout. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.
... Performers in both the maladaptive perfectionism profiles reported damaging self-perceptions, including relatively high contingent self-worth and low basic self-esteem. These results are in line with researchers (e.g., Flett, Besser, Davis, & Hewitt, 2003;Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011) noting that maladaptive perfectionism is linked to dysfunctional self-perceptions, including self-worth contingent on achievement and low basic self-esteem. ...
This study evaluated the relationship of perfectionism and self-perceptions with burnout and life satisfaction in aesthetic performers ( N = 254) recruited in Sweden. Cluster analysis revealed four groups: perfectionistic with maladaptive self-perceptions, perfectionistic (parent-driven) with maladaptive self-perceptions, achievement-oriented with adaptive self-perceptions, and nonperfectionistic with adaptive self-perceptions. Performers in both maladaptive clusters reported characteristics suggesting they were perfectionistic compared to their peers. They also reported relatively high contingent self-worth and low basic self-esteem. In contrast, those in the nonperfectionistic with adaptive self-perceptions cluster scored relatively low on perfectionism and reported relatively high basic self-esteem and low contingent self-worth. The performers in the achievement-oriented with adaptive self-perceptions cluster reported average scores across most variables, moderately high personal standards, and higher basic self-esteem compared with contingent self-worth. Overall, performers in both maladaptive clusters reported the highest burnout and lowest life satisfaction. Study findings underscore the importance of perfectionism and self-perceptions when considering burnout and life satisfaction.
... Toutefois, la contingence entre l'estime de soi et les résultats scolaires diffère selon le type de perfectionnisme. En effet, même si l'étudiant perfectionniste autodéterminé et celui sociodéterminé doivent impérativement surpasser leurs condisciples, le premier répond à un besoin de compétence alors que le deuxième répond à un besoin de reconnaissance (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Il serait peut-être plus juste, dans ce cas, de parler de quête de reconnaissance plutôt que de quête de perfection. ...
... Consequently, perfectionists might measure their worth in terms of productivity and accomplishment, which may lead them to overvalue achievements and undervalue the self (Greenspon, 2000). Outperforming others in a competitive manner, a generalised sense of competence (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011), and academic accomplishments have been found to be sources of self-worth for individuals with high perfectionistic strivings. Thus, high academic self-worth contingency may energise achievement striving in an attempt to establish self-worth (e.g., by preferring mastery-extrinsic or performance-approach orientations), but might also lead to defensive strategies (e.g., by evoking performance-avoidance or work-avoidance orientations). ...
Two studies utilising a group-based approach examined the relationships between perfectionism and achievement goal orientations, and the role academic self-worth contingency plays in this, among university (N = 506, Study I) and general upper-secondary school students (N = 154, Study II). In both studies, four groups of students were identified based on their patterns of perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns (i.e., perfectionistic profiles) using TwoStep cluster analysis, and group differences in achievement goal orientations were examined while controlling for the effect of academic self-worth contingency. High perfectionistic concerns, with or without high perfectionistic strivings, were connected with goals reflecting relative performance and avoidance, whereas high strivings with low concerns were linked with a stronger emphasis on mastery. Students with low strivings and low concerns were, instead, inclined towards work avoidance. Academic self-worth contingency was highest among students with high concerns, and it contributed significantly to group differences on achievement- and performance-related achievement goal orientations. This suggests that self-worth maintenance might be one of the mechanisms linking perfectionism and motivation.
... On the one hand, perfectionistic strivings are associated with problemfocused coping, higher subjective well-being, and higher athlete engagement (e.g., Gaudreau & Verner-Filion, 2012;Jowett, Hill, Hall, & Curran, 2016;Madigan, Hill, Anstiss, Mallinson-Howard, & Kumar, 2018). On the other hand, under conditions of failure, perfectionistic strivings predict decrements in performance and negative cognitions, and emotions toward the task and self (e.g., Anshel & Mansouri, 2005;Curran & Hill, 2018;Hill et al., 2011). Perfectionistic concerns, by contrast, show a more straightforward pattern of relationships. ...
Perfectionism predicts cognitions, emotions, and behaviors in sport. Nonetheless, our understanding of the factors that influence its development is limited. We sought to address this issue by examining the role of coach and parental pressure in the development of perfectionism in sport. Using three samples of junior athletes (16-19 years; cross-sectional: N = 212; 3-month longitudinal: N = 101; 6-month longitudinal: N = 110), we examined relations between coach pressure to be perfect, parental pressure to be perfect, perfectionistic strivings, and perfectionistic concerns. Mini meta-analysis of the combined cross-sectional data (N = 423) showed that both coach pressure and parental pressure were positively correlated with perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns. In contrast, longitudinal analyses showed that only coach pressure predicted increased perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns over time. Overall, our findings provide preliminary evidence that coaches may play a more important role in the development of junior athletes' perfectionism than parents.
... Underachieving behaviors, such as taking a less challenging version of Algebra II, may lessen a student's stress level in the present, but this choice impacts potential opportunities for learning and inhibits future progress. Self-oriented perfectionists may use self-handicapping behaviors, such as not submitting assignments in a course that is perceived to be difficult, to protect their sense of self-worth, especially when they believe that they will experience failure (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). ...
The current study compared differences between mind-set beliefs about intelligence (fixed vs. growth), dimensions of perfectionism (Concern Over Mistakes, Doubt of Action, Personal Standards, Organization), and achievement attitudes among gifted underachievers (n = 15) and gifted achievers (n = 169) in Grades 6 to 8 and examined the relationship between mind-set beliefs and dimensions of perfectionism. Gifted underachievers had higher fixed mind-set beliefs about intelligence (d = .79), lower scores on Organization (d = −1.01), and lower Self-Regulation/Motivation (d = −1.17) when compared with gifted achievers. These factors also were statistically significant in logistic regression models predicting achievement status. In addition, for the entire sample of gifted students (N = 264), fixed mind-set beliefs predicted both dimensions of Evaluative Concerns Perfectionism (Concern Over Mistakes, β = .35, p < .0001; Doubt of Action, β = .28, p < .0001), while growth mind-set beliefs predicted both dimensions of Positive Strivings Perfectionism (Personal Standards, β = .35, p < .0001, and Organization, β = .21, p = .001). Our findings provide a clearer picture of the relationships among underachievement, perfectionism, implicit theories of intelligence, and achievement attitudes, providing guidance for affective interventions.
... Perfectionistic concerns refer to negative aspect of perfectionism, and they are related to negative outcomes such as depression, anxiety, negative affect and stress (Stoeber & Otto, 2006). Hill, Hall, and Appleton (2011) have also revealed strong negative zero-order associations between perfectionistic concerns and indicators of psychological well-being, life satisfaction, and positive mood. The second approach, used in this study, is a group-based approach. ...
Research focusing on relationship between perfectionism and self-esteem is rather new and offers various and sometimes contradictory findings. Furthermore, a relationship between perfectionism and implicit self-esteem is still an under- investigated topic. The aim of this study was to explore differences in levels of implicit and explicit self-esteem and self-presentation between positive and negative perfectionists. One hundred and forty undergraduate psychology participants in two time points filled in the Self-Liking and Self- Competence Scale, the Perfectionistic Self-Presentation Scale, the Perfectionism Questionnaire, and the Implicit Associations Test. Results showed a significant difference in self-liking, nondisplay of imperfection, and nondisclosure of imperfection between positive and negative perfectionists. Positive perfectionists scored significantly higher on self-liking, and lower on nondisplay and nondisclosure of imperfection than negative perfectionists did. Positive perfectionists also had significantly higher levels of implicit self-esteem. There was no significant difference in self-competence and perfectionistic self-promotion between positive and negative perfectionists.
... Third, socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP), unlike the aforementioned dimensions, consists of pursuing perfection to satisfy excessive standards and expectations of others, rather than those generated by individual themselves. Perfectionism in sports is considered a leading variable that positively affects athletic achievement [2,16,17], but also negatively affects performance [18][19][20]. A review of perfectionism revealed that it is closely associated with stress [21,22]. ...
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship among perfectionism, stress, and burnout in college golf athletes. Participants were 221 college students. Self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism were found to be the antecedent variables causing stress. Self-oriented perfectionism reduced personal accomplishments, and socially prescribed perfectionism increased the level of burnout. Additionally, perceived stress not only engendered emotional exhaustion but also reduced personal accomplishments. Regarding indirect effects, self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism increased the level of stress and affected athletes` emotional exhaustion and lack of accomplishments. The results will be of use for helping athletes to escape from the perfectionism that occurs due to their obsession with winning, thus laying the foundation for athletes to continue to enjoy their sports.
... More generally, we consider this finding to be supportive of the notion that contingent self-worth is a core feature of perfectionism (Greenspon, 2000). This has been evidenced for other dimensions of perfectionism in previous studies (e.g., DiBartolo, Frost, Chang, LaSota, & Grills, 2004;Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011) and is also likely to be the case for self-critical and narcissistic perfectionism. ...
Studies show that the development of perfectionism in adolescence is associated with psychologically controlling parenting. The current study extends research in this area by examining the relationship between a specific aspect of psychologically controlling parenting, parental conditional regard, and two dimensions of perfectionism, self-critical perfectionism and narcissistic perfectionism. Three hundred and sixteen adolescents (M age = 15.69 years, s = 1.23) completed a standardised questionnaire. Structural equation modelling revealed that both self-critical perfectionism and narcissistic perfectionism were positively predicted by parental conditional regard. Our findings are the first to suggest that parent socialization characterised by guilt inducement and love withdrawal may be common to the development of these two distinct dimensions of perfectionism.
... This might result in developing self-worth contingent on others' approval, which has been associated with perfectionistic concerns (A. Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Another possible explanation is that if adolescents have a history of high academic achievement, others start to expect them to always be the best based on their previous performance. ...
Objective:
Although perfectionism is a prominent personality disposition, only a few longitudinal studies have investigated how perfectionism develops. Theoretical models and qualitative studies have posited that academic success is a developmental antecedent of perfectionism. Yet, quantitative studies tend to interpret the cross-sectional relationships as academic success being an outcome of perfectionism. In light of these gaps in the literature, the present study was the first to investigate the longitudinal relationships between perfectionistic strivings, perfectionistic concerns, academic achievement, and academic efficacy by examining academic success as an antecedent of perfectionism.
Method:
The study examined 487 adolescents (aged 12-19 years, 54% female) using a cross-lagged longitudinal design with three time points spaced 4-5 months apart.
Results:
Results showed that academic achievement predicted relative increases in both perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns, even when including academic efficacy. In addition, academic efficacy predicted relative increases in perfectionistic strivings.
Conclusions:
This is the first study to show that academic achievement is a common factor in the development of perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns, whereas academic efficacy plays a role only in the development of perfectionistic strivings. Implications of the findings for the development of perfectionism are discussed.
... Research on perfectionism provided similar results. According to Hill, Hall and Appleton (2011), the CSW scales competition and other's approval predicted socially prescribed perfectionism, while competition and competencies predicted self-directed perfectionism. Moreover, Zeigler- Hill and Terry (2007) found that ISE moderates the relation between perfectionism and ESE. ...
Among the contemporary approaches of self-esteem, the dual-process model and the contingencies of self-worth model have been linked to similar phenomena like narcissism, perfectionism or negative emotions. The present studies aimed to investigate the way in which implicit self-esteem can moderate the relations between explicit self-esteem and particular contingencies of self-worth. In Study 1, we found that implicit self-esteem moderates the relation of explicit self-esteem with academic competencies and family support. In Study 2, the data supported the same moderating role of implicit self-esteem in the relation between explicit self-esteem and family support, while showing that implicit self-esteem also moderates the relation between explicit self-esteem and virtue. Since we used two different ways to assess self-esteem, the converging results from the two studies can be considered to be particularly robust.
... However, an obsessive preoccupation with flawlessness encapsulated by perfectionism appears to provide the foundations for burnout. This is because perfectionism is characterized by a rigid adherence to unrealistic performance goals that are the basis for self-worth (Greenspon, 2008;Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Performance outcomes can therefore carry an irrational sense of importance that evokes higher levels of dysfunctional cognitions and affect in achievement contexts (Flett & Hewitt, 2006;Mor, Day, Flett, & Hewitt, 1995). ...
This study investigated whether motivation regulations mediate the relationship between socially prescribed and self-oriented dimensions of perfectionism and athlete burnout. Two-hundred and thirty-one (N = 231) elite junior athletes completed the Child and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale (Flett, Hewitt, Boucher, Davidson, & Munro, 2000), the Sport Motivation Scale (Pelletier, Fortier, Vallerand, Tuson, & Blais, 1995), and the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (Raedeke & Smith, 2009). Multiple mediator regression analyses revealed that amotivation mediated the relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and burnout symptoms. Amotivation and intrinsic motivation emerged as signifcant mediators of the relationship between self-oriented perfectionism and burnout symptoms. The fndings suggest that patterns of motivation regulations are important factors in the perfectionism-athlete burnout relationship.
... Socially prescribed perfectionism should be associated particularly with role stress since a role includes expectations from others, and both socially prescribed perfectionism and role stress are underpinned by social expectations (Kahn et al., 1964;Hewitt & Flett, 1991;Rizzo et al., 1970). For socially prescribed perfectionists, standards are not only excessively high but also integral to self-identity and selfworth since these individuals believe that acceptance and approval are conditional upon attaining others' standards (Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2011). Hence, socially prescribed perfectionists face a paradox as they do not believe they can live up to others' high standards even though doing so is the very cornerstone of their selfworth (Hall, 2006;Hewitt & Flett, 1993). ...
Stress and burnout in the workplace have a negative impact on organizations and customers and are estimated to cost the economy billions every year. To help identify employees at high risk, it is important to know what individual differences contribute to stress and burnout. Two longitudinal studies were conducted to examine whether individual differences in socially prescribed perfectionism (individuals’ perceptions that others impose perfectionistic standards onto them) contribute to employees’ role stress and predict increases in burnout symptoms (exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy). Study 1 investigated 69 employees working in healthcare service provision over a 6-month interval, and Study 2 investigated 195 school teachers over a 3-month interval. In both studies, socially prescribed perfectionism predicted longitudinal increases in role stress and inefficacy. Moreover, in Study 2, socially prescribed perfectionism also predicted longitudinal increases in exhaustion and cynicism. The findings indicate that individual differences in socially prescribed perfectionism may be a contributing factor to stress and burnout in the workplace.
Whilst some individuals exercise for health-related reasons, others appear to exercise to bolster physical attractiveness. For the latter, this is often attributed to dissatisfaction with appearance. Few studies, however, have explored if differences in self-esteem may relate to diverse exercise reasons. The present study investigated whether global self-esteem, appearance-contingent self-worth, and appearance satisfaction may be differentially associated with health and attractiveness exercise reasons. It was further sought to explore whether these relations coincided with different motivational regulations. Adults from the east midlands of the United Kingdom (N = 209; 75% female, 25% male; mean age = 29.77 years) completed measures relating to their global and appearance-contingent self-worth, appearance satisfaction, exercise intentions, and motivations. Path analysis revealed that global self-esteem was positively associated with appearance satisfaction and health reasons for exercise, whereas appearance-contingent self-esteem related to lower appearance satisfaction and attractiveness reasons. Appearance satisfaction had no association with either exercise reason but was associated with intrinsic motivation and lower controlled exercise motivations. Health exercise reasons were positively associated with intrinsic, identified, and introjected motivation, whereas attractiveness reasons were exclusively related to external motivation. The findings highlight the conceptual importance of differentiating the level and contingency of exercisers’ self-esteem. The findings may also have substantive value for exercise practitioners in understanding different reasons for exercise.
Perfectionism and performance have long been intertwined. The conceptual history of this relationship is best considered complex, with some theorists maintaining that perfectionism is likely to impair performance and others more recently suggesting that aspects of perfectionism may form part of a healthy pursuit of excellence. Recent studies on perfectionism and performance in sport, education, and the workplace provide us with evidence that perfectionism is indeed an important characteristic in achievement domains. However, this relationship is exceedingly complex. In examining this relationship empirically, researchers have distinguished between two dimensions of perfectionism. The first is perfectionistic strivings that comprise high personal standards and a self-oriented striving for perfection. The second is perfectionistic concerns that comprise a preoccupation with mistakes and negative reactions to imperfection. With regard to perfectionistic strivings, research has revealed that in certain circumstances they are related to better performance. Evidence for this is strongest in education but notably mixed in sport and the workplace. With regard to perfectionistic concerns, while there is evidence that they may not directly impair performance, there is also enough evidence that they may have a detrimental indirect influence on performance. Based on existing research, we argue that there is currently too little research and too many mixed findings to conclude perfectionistic strivings forms part of a healthy pursuit of excellence. In addition, the role of perfectionistic concerns for performance is likely to be more substantive than currently suggested.
Perfectionism purportedly bestows vulnerability to distress via an interaction with achievement and interpersonal stress. We test this by assessing athletes’ perfectionism and subsequent self-conscious emotion following repeated competitive failure. Sixty college athletes undertook three 4-minute competitive sprint trials on a cycle ergometer and were instructed that they had performed the worst of all competitors on each occasion. Measures of perfectionism (self-oriented and socially prescribed) were taken at baseline and measures of pride, guilt, and shame were taken at baseline and three times following each successive failure. Across the successive failures, self-oriented perfectionism predicted within-person trajectories of decreasing pride and increasing guilt. Socially prescribed perfectionism predicted within-person trajectories of increasing shame and guilt. Furthermore, a combination of high self-oriented and high socially prescribed perfectionism predicted the steepest within-person increases in shame and guilt. Findings support an achievement specific vulnerability hypothesis whereby those higher in perfectionism experience pronounced distress following competitive failure.
Background
Although previous studies have shown that people applying for cosmetic surgery experience high-intensity psychological distress, important variables that function as protective factors have rarely been the subject of study in this population. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the role of low and high self-knowledge in experiencing psychological distress and contingencies of self-worth to appearance and approval from others and to identify the mediatory role of the integrative self-knowledge in patients seeking cosmetic surgery. Methods
Eighty-eight patients seeking cosmetic surgery were selected and completed the contingencies of self-worth and integrative self-knowledge scales, as well as the depression, anxiety and stress scale. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and path analysis using 5000 bootstrap resampling. ResultsThe results of MANOVA showed that patients seeking cosmetic surgery with high self-knowledge had lower levels of depression, anxiety and stress compared to patients with low self-knowledge. They also gained lower scores in contingencies of self-worth to appearance and approval from others. The results of path analysis indicated that self-knowledge is a complete mediator in the relationship between contingencies of self-worth to appearance and approval from others and psychological distress. Conclusion
Based on the results of this study, it can be concluded that self-knowledge as a protective factor plays a major role in relation to the psychological distress experienced by the patients seeking cosmetic surgery. In fact, by increasing self-knowledge among this group of patients, their psychological distress can be decreased.
Our study aims to investigate the prevalence of the phenomenon of bigorexia (addiction to sport)
through its relationship with perfectionism and overtraining among Tunisian players in team sports. 153
players from team sports with (mean age 19.97± 03,018) responded to various questionnaires such as addiction
to sport scale (the EDS-R of Hausenblas and Downs, 2002), the questionnaire of overtraining (the SOSQ of
Chatard et al.,2003) and the assessment of perfectionism developed by Burns (1981). The presented results
indicate that the scale of dependence to physical exercise has a very good internal consistency (α = .889). The
results obtained from the correlation matrix between perfectionism, overtraining and the 7 dimensions of
addiction to sport indicate that there is a negative correlation at p <0.1 between perfectionism, overtraining
and the majority of variables of addiction to sport. While the correlation between overtraining and the 7
dimensions is positive at p <0.1 except the dimension of tolerance. We also note that there is an effect of sports
on sports addiction and perfectionism only. These results are consistent with the work of Blaydon (2002),
Valerie (2010); Velea (2002) who noted that the dependence is related to the hard practice and overtraining.
However, perfectionism is negatively correlated with addiction to sport and overtraining and this contradicts
with the most previous studies of (Velea, 2002; Guerreschi, 2008; Kern, 2009). In view of these factors, we
realize that the issue of addiction to sport is multifactorial and complex as strongly linked to inter-individual
variability.
http://www.testzentrale.de/programm/selbstwertinventar-fuer-kinder-und-jugendliche.html?catId=19
The 2 × 2 model posits that different combinations of evaluative concerns and personal standards perfectionism contribute to four distinct perfectionism subtypes (or profiles). This study provides further analysis of data from the only study to date to test this model in dance (Cumming & Duda, 2012). In doing so, we aimed to further examine the hypothesis proposed by Gaudreau and Thompson (2010) that mixed perfectionism is more adaptive than pure evaluative concerns perfectionism on account of the personal standards perfectionism dimensions that contribute to the mixed perfectionism profile. We also examined whether the model could explain differences in previously unexamined motivation-related constructs (intrinsic motivation and fear offailure) and indicators of self evaluations (self-esteem and body dissatisfaction) between these and the other subtypes. 194 vocational dancers (169 female, 23 male, M age - 16.73, SD -1.45) completed three subscales of the multidimensional perfectionism scale (Frost, Marten, Lahart, & Rosenblate, 1990) tapping the perfectionism dimensions of personal standards, concern over mistakes and doubts about actions. Dancers also responded to items assessing intrinsic motivation, fear of failure, self-esteem and body dissatisfaction. Differences between the four clusters established in Cumming and Duda (2012) in the criterion variables were revealed. Overall, findings provided partial support for each of the four hypotheses of the 2 × 2 model. Findings did not support the suggestion that personal standards perfectionism buffers mixed perfectionists from the debilitating consequences of evaluative concerns perfectionism.
Research suggests that self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism have unique and distinct motivational properties that are evident among junior athletes. Likewise, harmonious and obsessive passions encompass distinctive patterns of motivation. Based on suggestions that different dimensions of perfectionism may be associated with varying types of passion, the aim of the current study was to test the possibility that self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism could be distinguished based on their relationship with harmonious and obsessive passion in junior athletes. Two hundred and forty-nine athletes (M age = 16.07, SD = 2.22) competing in various youth sports completed measures of perfectionism and passion. Multiple regression and canonical correlation analyses indicated that self-oriented perfectionism predicted higher levels of both types of passion. In contrast, socially prescribed perfectionism predicted only obsessive passion. The findings provide an initial indication that the motivational differences between self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism extend to the types of passion they engender. The findings also provide additional insight into the patterns of motivation that are likely to arise from the two dimensions of perfectionism in junior athletes.
While perfectionism is a personality characteristic that may energise heightened achievement striving and lead to considerable success, it may also elicit a range of maladaptive processes which undermine motivation, impair performance and contribute to psychological distress. This paper is informed by research on perfectionism in social, clinical and sport psychology. It presents evidence to suggest that perfectionism may have paradoxical effects on those seeking to excel in sport, and warns that the same debilitating processes may be observed in other performance contexts. After first outlining the nature of perfectionism, the paper attempts to differentiate perfectionism from adaptive achievement striving, and explain the process by which perfectionism may undermine the quality of motivation and contribute to burnout in aspiring athletes. It then presents evidence to demonstrate that this characteristic may have similarly debilitating consequences in the performing arts. Finally, the paper offers some practical strategies for those working with performing artists exhibiting perfectionistic tendencies. These strategies focus upon modification of psychological mechanisms which underpin debilitating patterns of cognition, affect and behaviour, and they suggest how perfectionism and its destructive effects might be successfully managed in performance contexts while enabling individuals to sustain high quality motivation in their pursuit of excellence.
Undergraduates (N = 204, 71 men and 131 women; average age 20.81, 95% White/European American) completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (Frost, Marten, Lahart, & Rosenblate, 1990), the Coping Inventory (Carver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989), and the Personal-Emotional Adjustment subscale of the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (Baker & Siryk, 1984). Measures of coping and emotional adjustment revealed differences between three groups of students labeled adaptive, maladaptive, and nonperfectionists. Perfectionism and coping predicted emotional adjustment but coping as a moderator or mediator in the prediction of adjustment was not supported. There was support for perfectionism as mediating dysfunctional coping. Implications for intervention and prevention are discussed.
"Introduction to Psychological Tests and Scales" is [a] text for all psychology students who are embarking on fieldwork or research analysis. The author . . . examines these core areas of the psychologist's training and education. Emphasis is placed on the practical aspects of test construction and questionnaire development . . . , which allows the author to introduce statistical tests and methods of analysis.
The author's principal aim is to teach beginners how to construct simple self-report measures of psychological constructs such as beliefs, attitudes, moods, feelings, values, skills and so on. Loewenthal seeks to develop the student's ability to write, understand and evaluate reports on a range of psychological measures. She also tackles the problem of statistical test selection for a particular set of results.
As an undergraduate primer, this book provides a . . . foundation for more advanced study and the application of psychometrics. It will be [a] tool for psychology undergraduates and [an] introductory text for students and professionals in related disciplines. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
introduce and elaborate upon a critical distinction between what [the authors] call "contingent" and "true" self-esteem / contingent self-esteem involves feelings of self-worth that are dependent on matching standards of excellence or expectations (i.e., ego involvement) / it is thought to be associated with various narcissistic and defensive processes that reveal less than optimal psychological well-being / true self-esteem is more solidly based and stable, and it reflects positive mental health / discuss how this distinction fits into [the authors'] well-known theory of self-determination / describe in detail various self-regulatory processes that are thought to promote either contingent or true self-esteem / discuss how these various self-regulatory processes are related to mental health, and . . . describe the social conditions that are thought to promote self-determination and the development of true self-esteem (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Perfectionism was assessed using the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, along with a measure of the Big Five factor model, in order to describe perfectionism within the set of constructs provided by the Big Five factor model. Self-oriented perfectionism was strongly associated with conscientiousness, and with the achievement striving subscale in particular. Self-oriented perfectionism was also modestly associated with facets of neuroticism and agreeableness. Other-oriented perfectionism was inversely associated with agreeableness. Socially-prescribed perfectionism was associated only with the depression subscale of the neuroticism factor. Self-oriented perfectionism appeared predominately adaptive, while other-oriented and socially-prescribed perfectionism appeared predominately maladaptive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Examined the associations among the frequency of negative social interactions, personality traits, and depressive symptoms in university students. 176 Ss completed measures of negative social interactions, sociotropy, autonomy, perfectionism, and depressive symptoms. It was found in the total sample that higher depression symptoms scores were correlated significantly with the frequency of negative social interactions, sociotropy, autonomy, and socially prescribed perfectionism. Additional results indicate that the frequency of negative social interactions accounted for unique variance in depressive symptoms over and above the variance predicted by personality traits, but it did not interact with these personality traits to predict unique variance in depressive symptoms. It was also found that the reported frequency of negative social interactions was correlated positively with socially prescribed perfectionism, sociotropy, and autonomy, especially among women. The current findings are discussed in terms of their implications for specific vulnerability and stress generation models of personality, life events, and depressive symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This chapter describes a general approach to handling missing data in psychological research. It provides a theoretical background in readable, nontechnical fashion. Our overall goal was to give practical, usable advice, rather than to give a detailed statistical treatment of issues surrounding analysis of incomplete data. We give an overview of the older, unacceptable methods for handling incomplete data, so that readers will know what approaches to avoid; although analysis of complete cases is sometimes an acceptable solution, we argue that pairwise deletion and mean substitution should be avoided. With respect to newer, acceptable methods, we give a general overview, including a brief discussion of the full information maximum likelihood structural equation modeling procedures (such as Amos, Mx, LISREL 8.5, and Mplus), but focus primarily on multiple imputation as a general solution. We give specific guidelines for making use of state-of-the-art multiple imputation software and step-by-step instructions for using multiple imputation with Schafer's (1997) NORM program. Empirical examples of exploratory and data quality analyses and a substantive illustration involving multiple linear regression demonstrate the use of multiple imputation in practice. The chapter concludes with a discussion of some practical issues that often arise in connection with the analysis of incomplete data.
Keywords:
attrition;
data quality analysis;
full information maximum likelihood estimation;
incomplete data;
missing data;
multiple imputation;
NORM
Research on self-esteem has focused almost exclusively on level of trait self-esteem to the neglect of other potentially more important aspects such as the contingencies on which self-esteem is based. Over a century ago, W. James (1890) argued that self-esteem rises and falls around its typical level in response to successes and failures in domains on which one has staked self-worth. We present a model of global self-esteem that builds on James' insights and emphasizes contingencies of self-worth. This model can help to (a) point the way to understanding how self-esteem is implicated in affect, cognition, and self-regulation of behavior, (b) suggest how and when self-esteem is implicated in social problems; (c) resolve debates about the nature and functioning of self-esteem; (d) resolve paradoxes in related literatures, such as why people who are stigmatized do not necessarily have low self-esteem and why self-esteem does not decline with age; and (e) suggest how self-esteem is causally related to depression. In addition, this perspective raises questions about how contingencies of self-worth are acquired and how they change, whether they are primarily a resource or a vulnerability, and whether some people have noncontingent self-esteem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) (journal abstract)
It has been argued that elite junior athletes may be especially vulnerable to the development of burnout [Coakley, D. (1992). Burnout among adolescent athletes: A personal failure or social problem. Sociology, 9, 271–285; Feigley, D. A. (1984). Psychological burnout in high-level athletes. The Physician and Sports Medicine, 12, 108–119; Raedeke, T. D. (1997). Is athlete burnout more than just stress? A sport commitment perspective. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 19, 396–418]. Few studies to date have examined the psychological mechanisms that may underpin this vulnerability. One exception was a study by Gould, Tuffrey, Udry, and Loehr [(1996). Burnout in competitive junior tennis players: I. A quantitative psychological assessment. The Sport Psychologist, 10, 332–340], which found that a form of perfectionism reflecting a preoccupation with avoiding mistakes differentiated between burnout and non-burnout tennis players. The first purpose of the present investigation was to extend this research and examine the influence of self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism on burnout in elite junior soccer players. A second purpose was to examine whether the association between perfectionism and burnout was mediated by unconditional self-acceptance.
According to traditional views of perfectionism, perfectionists are prone to experience shame and guilt and unable to experience pride. However, these views ignore that perfectionism is multidimensional and multifaceted. Consequently, the present study adopted a multidimensional approach and investigated in a sample of N = 67 university students how four facets of perfectionism – perfectionistic striving, importance of being perfect, others’ high standards, conditional acceptance – were related to pride, shame, and guilt following experimental manipulation of success and failure. Results showed that perfectionistic striving was associated with more pride following success, whereas all facets were associated with more shame and guilt following failure, particularly conditional acceptance. Furthermore, conditional acceptance was associated with less pride regardless of success or failure. Supporting views of perfectionism that differentiate between adaptive and maladaptive aspects, the findings show that individuals who strive for perfection experience more pride after success. Whereas all facets of perfectionism were related to more shame and guilt after failure, only individuals who think that others’ approval is conditional upon being perfect seem to be unable to experience pride. The findings demonstrate that perfectionistic striving per se is not maladaptive, but conditional acceptance may be an important factor in maladaptive and clinical perfectionism.
This study investigated an integrative model involving the relationship between perfectionism (P.L. Hewitt & G.L. Flett, 1991) and coping (C.S. Carver, M.F. Scheier, & J.K. Weintraub, 1989) to predict changes in hopelessness and general psychological distress among college students. Results indicated that changes in psychological well-being (4 to 5 weeks later) were predicted by socially prescribed perfectionism and, as theorized, avoidance coping moderated the link between perfectionism and psychological well-being beyond initial levels of distress. Support was also found for the adaptive effects of cognitive reconstruction coping and other-oriented perfectionism whereas, under certain conditions, self-oriented perfectionism was shown to be maladaptive. These findings offer support for the proposed model. Implications for intervention and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Relationship-contingent self-esteem (RCSE) emerges from perspectives on authenticity, need fulfillment, and relationship functioning and is an unhealthy form of self-esteem that depends on one's relationship. Four studies provided evidence of convergent, discriminant, incremental, and predictive validity for RCSE. Study 1 tested associations between RCSE and several conceptually related and unrelated constructs in multiple samples. In Study 2, the authors employed an event-contingent diary procedure to examine reports of self-esteem as a function of everyday relationship events. The association between event valence and changes in self-esteem became stronger with RCSE, and this interaction remained controlling for several parallel interactions by other constructs. Study 3 employed an interval-contingent diary procedure and found support for a mediation model in which the moderating role of RCSE largely occurred through momentary emotions, which in turn predicted momentary self-esteem. Study 4 sampled couples and found that partners who were both higher in RCSE felt more committed but not more satisfied or close.
This article attempted to demonstrate that the perfectionism construct is multidimensional, comprising both personal and social components, and that these components contribute to severe levels of psychopathology. We describe three dimensions of perfectionism: self-oriented perfectionism, other-oriented perfectionism, and socially prescribed perfectionism. Four studies confirm the multidimensionality of the construct and show that these dimensions can be assessed in a reliable and valid manner. Finally, a study with 77 psychiatric patients shows that self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed perfectionism relate differentially to indices of personality disorders and other psychological maladjustment. A multidimensional approach to the study of perfectionism is warranted, particularly in terms of the association between perfectionism and maladjustment.
The Contingencies of Self-Worth Scale assesses 7 sources of self-esteem in college students: academics, appearance, approval from others, competition, family support, God's love, and virtue. In confirmatory factor analyses on data from 1,418 college students, a 7-factor model fit to the data acceptably well and significantly better than several plausible alternative models. The subscales all have high internal consistency, test-retest reliability, are distinct from other personality measures, and have a simplex structure arrayed on a continuum from external to internal sources of self-esteem. Contingencies of self-worth assessed prior to college predicted how students spent their time during their 1st year of college.
Two studies examined contingent self-esteem (CSE) and responses to appearance-related social comparisons. Study 1 was an experimental study in which women rated a series of advertisements from popular women's magazines. Study 2 employed an event-contingent diary recording procedure. In Study 1, women who were higher in CSE and lower in self-perceptions of attractiveness (SPA) experienced greater decreases in positive affect and greater increases in negative affect following the ad-rating task. Study 2 results supported a mediation model in which women who were higher in CSE felt worse after social comparisons because they made primarily upward comparisons. Overall, results suggest that appearance-related comparisons are more distressing for those who base their self-worth on contingencies and have lower self-perceived attractiveness.
Researchers have recently questioned the benefits associated with having high self-esteem. The authors propose that the importance of self-esteem lies more in how people strive for it rather than whether it is high or low. They argue that in domains in which their self-worth is invested, people adopt the goal to validate their abilities and qualities, and hence their self-worth. When people have self-validation goals, they react to threats in these domains in ways that undermine learning; relatedness; autonomy and self-regulation; and over time, mental and physical health. The short-term emotional benefits of pursuing self-esteem are often outweighed by long-term costs. Previous research on self-esteem is reinterpreted in terms of self-esteem striving. Cultural roots of the pursuit of self-esteem are considered. Finally, the alternatives to pursuing self-esteem, and ways of avoiding its costs, are discussed.
In two studies, individuals' dominant achievement goals were assessed using a new, simple, and conceptually precise measure based on Elliot and McGregor's (2001) 2 x 2 framework. Next, the four groups were compared in terms of achievement-relevant variables, including need for achievement, perfectionism, perceived competence, interest, and graded performance. As expected, a very high percentage (approximately 85%) of people indicated they had a dominant achievement goal. Furthermore, the results suggest that individuals with different dominant achievement goals have clear, distinct profiles that can be characterized as positively valenced (mastery-approach), both positively and negatively valenced (performance-approach), negatively valenced (performance-avoidance), or neither positively nor negatively valenced (mastery-avoidance).
The purpose of the present study was to create and test a model that (a) illustrated variables influencing the development of perfectionism, and (b) demonstrated how different types of perfectionism may influence the achievement goals of high-ability students. Using a multiple-groups path analysis, the researchers found that parenting style was related to attachment, with authoritative and permissive parenting associated with secure attachment and authoritarian and uninvolved parenting associated with insecure attachment. Attachment, in turn, was related to perfectionism, with insecure attachment associated with either self-oriented or socially prescribed perfectionism. In addition, the model then illustrated that perfectionism would influence achievement goals, with self-oriented perfectionists more likely to set mastery or performance-approach goals, and socially prescribed perfectionists more likely to set performance-approach or performance-avoidance goals. The findings of this study are interpreted in the context of the existing literature, and implications for working with high-ability perfectionistic students are discussed.
The present study examined the associations among perfectionism, marital coping, and marital functioning in a community sample of 76 couples. A theoretical model was tested in which maladaptive coping mediates the relationship between trait perfectionism and poorer marital functioning. As predicted, one of the interpersonal dimensions of perfectionism, socially prescribed perfectionism, was associated with maladaptive marital coping and poorer marital adjustment for both the self and the partner, even after controlling for depression and neuroticism. Finally, the use of negative coping strategies mediated the relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and poorer marital functioning for both the self and the partner. Overall, this study highlights the importance of spouse-specific forms of perfectionism in marital adjustment.
In this article, I present a theoretical perspective on the nature of "optimal" self-esteem. One of my major goals is to show that optimal and high self-esteem are different from each other. High self-esteem can be fragile or secure depending upon the extent to which it is defensive or genuine, contingent or true, unstable or stable, and discrepant or congruent with implicit (nonconscious)feelings of self-worth. Optimal self-esteem is characterized by qualities associated with genuine, true, stable, and congruent (with implicit self-esteem) high self-esteem. A second major goal is to present a conceptualization of the construct of authenticity. I propose that authenticity as an individual difference construct may be particularly important in delineating the adaptive features of optimal self-esteem. Authenticity can be characterized as the unobstructed operation of one's true, or core, self in one's daily enterprise. I argue that authenticity has 4 components: awareness, unbiased processing, action, and relational. Initial data pertaining to these components are highly encouraging. Finally, I discuss some implications of the fragile versus secure high self-esteem distinction for narcissism, defensive processing models, and cross-cultural self-esteem perspectives.
We tested models of perceived stress and categorical thinking as mediators and also moderators of the association between perfectionism and psychological well-being. Results based on a large sample (N=364) of college students revealed significant associations between perfectionism and the cognitive-affective variables, and between perfectionism and the academic, social, and psychological adjustment variables. Each of the cognitive-affective variables also was significantly associated with the adjustment indicators, but the mediator models were only partially supported, and none of the moderator models were supported. The results are discussed in terms of other literature on the adaptive-maladaptive conceptualization of perfectionism. Findings suggest promising points of intervention to ease the effects of maladaptive perfectionism or enhance the attributes of adaptive perfectionism.
presents an overview of the literature on personality and coping / describe current research on coping and selected personality traits including the traits represented by the 5-factor model; locus of control; optimism; and traits that reflect achievement-related tendencies, notably, Type A behavior and perfectionism / in addition to describing research on the extent to which these personality traits are related to coping dimensions, we examine some key issues in the personality and coping literature, including the central question of whether coping styles represent personality traits / highlight some important directions for future research (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
P. L. Hewitt and G. L. Rett's (1991b) model of perfectionism dimensions (i.e., self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed perfectionism) was compared with A. T. Beck's model (G. P. Brown & A.T. Beck, 2002) of dysfunctional attitudes (i.e., perfectionistic attitudes [PA] and dependent attitudes [DA]) in predicting depression in 70 psychiatric patients and 280 university students. Socially prescribed perfectionism uniquely predicted both PA and DA. Dysfunctional attitudes failed to consistently predict additional variance in depression beyond perfectionism dimensions (and vice versa). Evidence for Hewitt and Flett's specific vulnerability hypothesis and Beck's specific cognitive vulnerability hypothesis was equivocal. Beck's conceptualization of perfectionism as a unitary cognitive style obscures important information by overlooking the distinction between the self-related and socially based features of perfectionism. Hewitt and Flett's conceptualization of perfectionism as 3 distinct personality traits allows for precise conclusions by recognizing the differential contribution of the self-related and socially based features of perfectionism.
In this article, I present a theoretical perspective on the nature of "optimal" self-esteem. One of my major goals is to show that optimal and high self-esteem are different from each other. High self-esteem can be fragile or secure depending upon the extent to which it is defensive or genuine, contingent or true, unstable or stable, and discrepant or congruent with implicit (nonconscious) feelings of self-worth. Optimal self-esteem is characterized by qualities associated with genuine, true, stable, and congruent (with implicit self-esteem) high self-esteem. A second major goal is to present a conceptualization of the construct of authenticity. I propose that authenticity as an individual difference construct may be particularly important in delineating the adaptive features of optimal self-esteem. Authenticity can be characterized as the unobstructed operation of one's true, or core, self in one's daily enterprise. I argue that authenticity has 4 components: awareness, unbiased processing, action, and relational. Initial data pertaining to these components are highly encouraging. Finally, I discuss some implications of the fragile versus secure high self-esteem distinction for narcissism, defensive processing models, and cross-cultural self-esteem perspectives.
Objectives
The personality of medical students may have an important impact on both their academic performance and emotional adjustment during medical school. There has been little systematic study of the impact of perfectionism on medical students. The present study sought to compare the perfectionism profile of medical students with that of a general arts student group and to examine the relationship among perfectionism, distress symptoms and academic expectations and satisfaction.DesignMedical students (n=96) and arts students (n=289) completed a baseline assessment including two multidimensional perfectionism scales. The medical students also completed measures of distress symptoms, personality (neuroticism, conscientiousness) and questions about their perceptions of their academic performance. Of the medical students, 58 completed a second set of questionnaires 6 months later (time 2).SubjectsFirst-, second- and third year medical students and first-year arts students.ResultsIn comparison with arts students, the perfectionism profile of medical students showed higher personal standards, lower doubts about actions and lower maladaptive perfectionism scores. In the medical students adaptive perfectionism (achievement striving) was significantly correlated with baseline academic performance expectations and conscientiousness and was predictive of dissatisfaction with academic performance at time 2. Maladaptive perfectionism (excessive evaluative concerns) was significantly correlated with baseline distress symptoms and neuroticism and was predictive of symptoms of depression and hopelessness at time 2.Conclusions
Perfectionism in medical students differs systematically from perfectionism in general arts students. Distinguishing adaptive and maladaptive aspects of perfectionism is important in understanding the cross-sectional and longitudinal implications of perfectionism for medical students.
Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) includes several main theories and practices, especially the hypotheses that people are both constructivists and destructivists. It holds that they have powerful innate and socially acquired tendencies to often be self-helping and rational but also self-defeating and irrational. REBT largely derives its method of therapy from many clients seen by the author, from hundreds of therapy studies, and from the social psychology literature. This article shows how REBT formulations overlap with some of the findings of social psychology, how these findings can appreciably be used to improve REBT practice, how some of the unique theories and methods of REBT may contribute to the field of social psychology, and how social psychologists can help to research some of the main REBT principles.
The current research investigated the associations among dimensions of perfectionism, unconditional self-acceptance, and self-reported depression. A sample of 94 students completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, the Unconditional Self-Acceptance Questionnaire, and a self-report depression measure. Correlational results indicated that all three trait dimensions of perfectionism (i.e., self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed perfectionism) were associated negatively with unconditional self-acceptance. Also, as expected, depression was associated with relatively low unconditional self-acceptance. Finally, a path analysis revealed that unconditional self-acceptance mediated the association between socially prescribed perfectionism and depression, and other-oriented perfectionism was found to affect depression only indirectly through its association with low levels of self-acceptance. The findings indicate that perfectionists evaluate themselves in terms of a contingent sense of self-worth, and as such, they are vulnerable to psychological distress when they experience negative events that do not affirm their self-worth.
The current study examined variables (daily hassles, self-esteem, dispositional optimism, coping modes, and perceived social
support) that could potentially moderate associations between dimensions of perfectionism and current feelings of hopelessness
and suicide ideation in university students (144 women; 61 men). Our study revealed several significant findings: (1) socially
prescribed perfectionism was a significant predictor of suicide ideation, interpersonal hopelessness, and achievement hopelessness
for both women and men; (2) self-oriented perfectionism did not have an independent relation with any of the suicide risk
outcome variables in either women or men; (3) other-oriented perfectionism was associated negatively with both current hopelessness,
particularly interpersonal hopelessness, and suicide ideation in men; (4) the cluster of proposed moderators accounted for
additional unique variance in all suicide risk variables in women but in achievement hopelessness only in men; (5) optimism
and social hassles were unique predictors but the results varied as a function of gender and outcome; (6) each perfectionism
component interacted with specific moderators to enhance or buffer the link between perfectionism and suicide risk. The findings
indicate that self-oriented and other-oriented perfectionism are possibly adaptive or maladaptive under certain conditions.
Implications for the development of comprehensive, multidimensional, integrated models of the perfectionism–suicide risk link
and for prevention and treatment in perfectionists at risk of suicide are discussed.
The study examined the relationships between perfectionism, unconditional self-acceptance and depression. The non-clinical
sample comprised 134 participants, each of whom completed a battery of questionnaires, including the Unconditional Self-Acceptance
Questionnaire (USAQ), the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Inventory (CES-D) and several measures of perfectionism.
Significant levels of association were found between all measures, and support was provided for the concept of perfectionism
as having a neutral core, distinguishable from its consequences, and for the theory that it is the negative consequences of
perfectionism, rather than perfectionism per se, that lead to depression. Path Analysis provided support for the mediator model proposed by Flett etal. [Flett, G. L., Besser,
A., Davis, R. A., Hewitt, P. L. (2003). Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 21, 119–138], in which unconditional self-acceptance mediates the effect of socially prescribed perfectionism on depression,
and for a more generic model, in which the core construct of perfectionism can have negative consequences, which lead to low
levels of unconditional self-acceptance, and thence to depression. Finally, a distinction was drawn between developmental
and operational models of perfectionism.
The current study investigated the role of contingent self-worth in perfectionism and depression. It was hypothesized that
perfectionism is associated with depression because perfectionists base their self-worth on being successful and on the need
to be actively working toward their goals. A sample of 170 female university students completed measures of conditional self-worth,
perfectionism traits, perfectionism cognitions, and depressive symptoms. Structural equation modeling revealed that a factor
interpreted as Evaluative Concerns Perfectionism was associated strongly with contingent self-worth, which was, in turn, related
to depressive symptomatology. In addition, contingent self-worth mediated the association between perfectionism cognitions
and depression. Other analyses revealed that measures of self-oriented perfectionism that are often viewed as highly similar
actually differed in terms of their associations with contingent self-worth. The theoretical and practical implications of
the associations between perfectionism and contingent self-worth are discussed.
The present research tested the hypothesis that perfectionists who experience stress are vulnerable to depression, in part
because negative life events represent a failure to maintain control over negative outcomes. In Study 1, 215 subjects completed
the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS) and control measures. The MPS assesses self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially
prescribed perfectionism. It was confirmed that self-oriented and other-oriented perfectionism were associated with both higher
desire for control and greater perceived personal control. Study 2 examined whether trait levels of perfectionism moderate
the link between life stress and symptoms of depression. In addition, prospective analyses investigated whether perfectionism
accounts for changes in levels of depressive symptomatology over time. Two samples comprised of 374 students (Sample 1) and
173 students (Sample 2) completed the MPS and measures of major life stress and depression symptoms. Subjects in Sample 2
completed these measures at two timepoints separated by a three-month interval. Regression analyses indicated that self-oriented
perfectionism and life stress interact significantly to produce higher levels of depressive symptomatology. Moreover, in Sample
2, self-oriented perfectionism at Time 1 was associated with increases in depression symptoms three months later for those
individuals who had experienced a major life event. The results provide support for diathesis-stress models, which maintain
that perfectionists exposed to life stress are vulnerable to symptoms of depression. The results are discussed in terms of
their implications for the study of personality, stress, and vulnerability to symptoms of depression.
Examined the costs of the pursuit of self-esteem, based on longitudinal data from an ethnically diverse sample of 642 college freshmen. It was hypothesized that external contingencies of self-worth require validation from others and are unreliable as a basis of self-esteem, and hence are associated with greater costs. In the summer before their freshman year, students completed the Contingencies of Self-Worth scale, and near the end of both their 1st and 2nd semesters, reported what campus organizations they had joined, and time spent in studying and various activities (volunteering, religious activities, exercising, clothes shopping, partying). Students also reported on problems or negative outcomes, including social problems, academic problems, aggression, sexual victimization, drug/alcohol use, and disordered eating. The results support the view that contingencies of self-worth shape how students spend their time, and the prediction that external contingencies of self-worth, especially appearance, have high costs for stress, aggression, drug and alcohol use, and symptoms of disordered eating. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)
The present paper reports the results of research that examines the link between dimensions of Type A behaviour and perfectionism in two separate samples. In sample one, 233 subjects (105 males, 128 females) completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS) and the student version of the Jenkins Activity Survey. The MPS has three subscales measuring self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed perfectionism. It was found that various components of Type A behaviour were associated positively with all three perfectionism dimensions among males. As for females, significant positive associations were present between various Type A measures and the perfectionism measures, with the exception of other-oriented perfectionism. In sample two, a broader assessment was obtained by having 100 subjects (57 males, 43 females) complete the MPS and three measures of Type A behaviour. Once again, it was found that at least one component of the Type A construct was associated with each perfectionism dimension, and these relations were present for both males and females. The findings of the present research are discussed in terms of how the perfectionistic standards of the Type A individual are expressed in interpersonal contexts. The results are also discussed in terms of the need for self-evaluation models to incorporate social standards.
This study explores the relationship between dimensions of perfectionism, forms and functions of self-criticism/reassurance, and how people attribute blame for external criticism. Previous research has linked perfectionism dimensions with self-criticism, but not investigated the different forms and functions of self-criticism. One hundred and twenty six participants took part in this study. Socially prescribed perfectionism was significantly correlated with all self-critical variables and depression. Other-oriented and self-oriented perfectionism were only associated with the self-correcting function of self-criticism. Blaming self for being criticised by others was associated with all forms and functions of self-criticism/reassurance and socially prescribed perfectionism. In contrast, blaming others for being criticised was negatively associated with the various forms and functions of self-criticism and socially prescribed perfectionism. When self-criticism was entered into a multiple regression the link between perfectionism and depression disappeared. Also when self-criticism is excluded, self-blame for being criticised becomes a predictor of depression but perfectionism does not. This study suggests that it may be self-critical elements associated with forms of perfectionism, and how individuals react to being criticised that is key to depressive symptoms.
After receiving contingent or noncontingent success feedback on a test, subjects were given the opportunity to self-handicap by selecting impairing (vs enhancing) music to listen to while taking a second test. Privacy of tape choice and posttest scores were manipulated. Overall, subjects were more likely to self-handicap after noncontingent than contingent success. In addition, high self-orientated perfectionists self-handicapped in public and in private, presumably for purposes of self-protection. High socially prescribed perfectionists self-handicapped more after noncontingent than contingent success in public but not in private. Presumably for this group, impression management is a primary concern.
Each subscale of the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (Hewitt & Flett, 1991) was factor analyzed in an attempt to determine whether perfectionism is best described as a categorical or as a dimensional construct. Relationships with Self-Esteem, Narcissism, Self-Control, and Self-Criticism confirmed the existence of relatively more adaptive and maladaptive elements within each subscale. Partial correlations looking at the adaptive while controlling for the maladaptive elements (and vice versa) yielded even clearer contrasts between the two forms of perfectionism. Self-Criticism was especially important in defining maladaptive perfectionism, whereas adaptive perfectionism reflected more positive forms of Self-Esteem regulation. These data supported a dimensional interpretation of perfectionism.
Past research on perfectionism has determined that the construct includes social dimensions involving standards for others and perceived standards imposed on the self by others. The present study sought to extend past research by determining the association between three dimensions of perfectionism (self-oriented perfectionism, other-oriented perfectionism and socially-prescribed perfectionism) and measures of perceived social skills and psychosocial adjustment. A sample of 105 students completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale along with multiple measures of psychosocial adjustment and perceived social skills. As expected, the correlational results demonstrated that high socially prescribed perfectionism was associated with a variety of psychosocial adjustment problems, including greater loneliness, shyness, and fear of negative evaluation, and lower levels of social self-esteem. In addition, socially prescribed perfectionists had lower self-perceived social skills. There were few significant findings involving self-oriented or other-oriented perfectionism. Taken together, these findings suggest that socially prescribed perfectionists are prone to suffer from various psychosocial problems and perceived deficits in social skills.
There are few topics so fascinating both to the research investigator and the research subject as the self-image. It is distinctively characteristic of the human animal that he is able to stand outside himself and to describe, judge, and evaluate the person he is. He is at once the observer and the observed, the judge and the judged, the evaluator and the evaluated. Since the self is probably the most important thing in the world to him, the question of what he is like and how he feels about himself engrosses him deeply. This is especially true during the adolescent stage of development.
The present study examined perfectionism and general coping ability as assessed by a new measure of constructive thinking. A sample of 77 students completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS) and the Constructive Thinking Inventory (CTI). The MPS provides measures of self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially-prescribed perfectionism, while the CTI provides various measures, including summary scores of global constructive thinking, emotional coping, behavioral coping, categorical thinking, personal superstitious thinking, naive optimism, and esoteric thinking. Subjects also completed a measure of depressive symptoms so that we could examine perfectionism and coping independent of current levels of adjustment. The main finding was that socially prescribed perfectionism was associated with less constructive thinking and more negative coping across most of the CTI subscales, and these associations remained significant after removing variance due to levels of depression symptoms. Self-oriented perfectionism was adaptive in that it was associated with active forms of behavioral coping, but it was maladaptive in that it was associated with a form of emotional coping involving reduced self-acceptance. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for the cognitive treatment of perfectionists.
The personality of medical students may have an important impact on both their academic performance and emotional adjustment during medical school. There has been little systematic study of the impact of perfectionism on medical students. The present study sought to compare the perfectionism profile of medical students with that of a general arts student group and to examine the relationship among perfectionism, distress symptoms and academic expectations and satisfaction.
Medical students (n=96) and arts students (n=289) completed a baseline assessment including two multidimensional perfectionism scales. The medical students also completed measures of distress symptoms, personality (neuroticism, conscientiousness) and questions about their perceptions of their academic performance. Of the medical students, 58 completed a second set of questionnaires 6 months later (time 2).
First-, second- and third year medical students and first-year arts students.
In comparison with arts students, the perfectionism profile of medical students showed higher personal standards, lower doubts about actions and lower maladaptive perfectionism scores. In the medical students adaptive perfectionism (achievement striving) was significantly correlated with baseline academic performance expectations and conscientiousness and was predictive of dissatisfaction with academic performance at time 2. Maladaptive perfectionism (excessive evaluative concerns) was significantly correlated with baseline distress symptoms and neuroticism and was predictive of symptoms of depression and hopelessness at time 2.
Perfectionism in medical students differs systematically from perfectionism in general arts students. Distinguishing adaptive and maladaptive aspects of perfectionism is important in understanding the cross-sectional and longitudinal implications of perfectionism for medical students.
Development of the contingent self-esteem scale. Unpublished data
- A W Paradise
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Ego protection: The effects perfectionism and gender on acquired and claimed self-handicapping and self-esteem
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The multidimensional perfectionism scale: Technical manual
- P L Hewitt
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Predicting hopelessness and psychological distress: The role of perfectionism and coping
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Using multivariate statistics
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