Perfectionism Flashcards
Perfectionism can be defined as
“A PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTIC THAT
REFLECTS THE TENDENCY TO STRIVE FOR
EXCEEDINGLY HIGH STANDARDS OF
PERFORMANCE IN A MANNER THAT IS
RELENTLESS, OVER SELF-CRITICAL, AND
CENTRAL TO ONE’S IDENTITY”
DEFINING PERFECTIONISM
Characteristic/Disposition vs Personality Trait
Perfectionism is domain-specific and general
It is debated, personality trait don’t change so it’s not leaning toward this side
DEFINING PERFECTIONISM
Manner
Achievement-motivation (Dunn, 2023), so it drives behaviour
Cognitive, emotional, and behavioural components of perfectionism
They create a disire to want to perform a certain way. Can be cognitive or emotional
DEFINING PERFECTIONISM
Exceedingly high standards
How do we define “exceedingly high”
It’s not just high, it’s unrealistic, it’s rigged (has to be this thing or nothing)
IS PERFECTIONISM ALL BAD?
Perfectionism, Prevelance is going up, out brain is hard wire to hold on to thing because they are useful,
Makes people wonder, is it all bad
PERFECTIONISM
PARADOX
Related to success in
achievement domains
(conscientiousness, adaptive
coping, positive affect)
Increasing vulnerability to
maladaptive behaviours,
cognitions, and affect
MULTIDIMENSIONAL PERSPECTIVE OF
PERFECTIONISM
PERSONAL STANDARDS PERFECTIONISM
EVALUATIVE CONCERNS PERFECTIONISM
PERSONAL STANDARDS PERFECTIONISM
striving for perfection
self-driven pursuit
setting extremely high standards
Organized
EVALUATIVE CONCERNS PERFECTIONISM
Characteristics
Concern over mistakes
Thinking that others demand
perfection from you
Doubts about actions and quality of
effort
Feeling that you can’t hit your mark
PERSONAL STANDARDS PERFECTIONISM
Leads to
Competing at higher levels,
performing better in races, engaging in exercise more frequently
Body dissatisfaction, exercise dependency, and depression
Not always good all the time
EVALUATIVE CONCERNS PERFECTIONISM
Leads to
Burnout, overtraining, and injury
PERFECTIONISTIC REACTIVITY
The response of people that might cause a trigger, people are going to react in predictable ways,
Both PSP & ECP can be adaptive or maladaptive
because they can influence behaviours/reactions.
How perfectionistic individuals respond to
unfavourable outcomes will determine the adaptive or maladaptiveness of perfectionism. People high in perfectionistic reactivity have a characteristic
response to adversity or the threat of imperfection.
Perfectionists will overreact
Perfectionists will overreact (physiologically and
psychologically) in moments where it is difficult to be perfect. This is especially true in moments when one realizes that perfection is no longer attainable.
Perfectionism and Cognitive motivational relation theory of emotion
Cognitive motivational relational theory of emotions
High perfectionistic reactivity, primary appraisal would be threathining, secondary appraisal could be no
If I’m going for perfection I might not have the resources to achieve the goal
2X2 MODEL OF
PERFECTIONISM
“ALTHOUGH AN INDEPENDENT EFFECTS
APPROACH IS VALUABLE, ATHLETES, DANCERS,
AND EXERCISERS WILL EXHIBIT VARYING
DEGREES OF BOTH OF THE TWO HIGHER‐ORDER
DIMENSIONS OF PERFECTIONISM
SIMULTANEOUSLY. THEREFORE, EXAMINING
DIFFERENT COMBINATIONS OF PS AND PC IS
IMPORTANT.
”
Pure Personal Standard Perfectionism
High PSP
Low ESP
PSP
Self-Orientated & Internalized Motivation
ECP
Socially Prescribed & Externally Regulated Motivation
Mixed Perfectionism
High PSP
High ECP
Non-Perfectionism
Low PSP
Low ECP
Pure ECP
Low PSP
High ECP
Hypothesis of 2x2 Model
Hypothesis 1:
Compared to non-perfectionism, Pure PSP will either be associated
(H1a) Better
(H1b) Poorer
(H1c) or no different outcomes
Hypothesis of 2x2 Model
Hypothesis 2:
non‐perfectionism will be associated with better outcomes than pure
ECP
Hypothesis of 2x2 Model
Hypothesis 3:
mixed perfectionism will be associated with better outcomes than pure
ECP.
Hypothesis of 2x2 Model
Hypothesis 4:
pure PSP will be associated with better outcomes than mixed
perfectionism.
Hypothesis of 2x2 Model
PSP and ECP result
ECP drives maladaptation.
PSP results are more ambiguous, suggesting that PSP is not
always helpful
Solution for PSP
Excellencism
What is the difference between the pursuit of perfection and the
pursuit of excellence?
Excellence is an achievable
goal, but perfection is not.
Perfection is unachievable
Unlike excellencism, perfectionistic strivers:
Aim high but do not perform as well (seen in academic settings)
have a tendency to sacrifice the self for their ambition
Have difficulties balancing various performance domains (e.g., school & sport)
Shown to be more tolerant of cheating
Unlike excellencism, perfectionistic strivers will…
What does the evidence suggest
This evidence suggests that “the desirable effects of perfectionistic
standards (observed in past studies) were potentially caused by an
undifferentiable combination of excellencism and perfectionism.”
