Domains of perfectionism: Prevalence and relationships with perfectionism, gender, age, and satisfaction with life

Abstract

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Physical appearance perfectionism explains variance in eating disorder symptoms above general perfectionism

“…Another important finding in research on perfectionism is that perfectionism is often domain-specific (Dunn, Gotwals, & Causgrove Dunn, 2005;McArdle, 2010;Stoeber & Stoeber, 2009) and that domain-specific measures of perfectionism may be better predictors of domainspecific processes and outcomes than general measures of perfectionism (e.g., Dunn, Craft, Causgrove Dunn, & Gotwals, 2011). Consequently, researchers have begun to use domainspecific measures of multidimensional perfectionism when examining how perfectionism relates to specific domains of peoples' lives such as sport, parenting, sexuality, and morality (Dunn et al, 2006;Snell, Overbey, & Brewer, 2005;Stoeber, Harvey, Almeida, & Lyons, 2013;Yang, Stoeber, & Wang, 2015).…”

“…One domain in which many people have perfectionistic tendencies is their physical PHYSICAL APPEARANCE PERFECTIONISM 5 appearance (Stoeber & Stoeber, 2009). To capture individual differences in perfectionism related to physical appearance, Yang and Stoeber (2012) introduced the concept of physical appearance perfectionism.…”

“…Dunn et al, 2011;McArdle, 2010). Whereas people high in general perfectionism are mostly concerned about their work and studies (school, university) (Slaney & Ashby, 1996;Stoeber & Stoeber, 2009), women showing eating disorder symptoms are concerned about their physical appearance and this concern may dominate their lives. Consequently, a measure of perfectionism focusing on this domain of life (physical appearance) has explanatory power with regards to individual differences in eating disorder symptoms beyond general measures of perfectionism.…”

Multidimensional Sexual Perfectionism

“…Of the three forms, only socially prescribed perfectionism represents an exclusively maladaptive form of perfectionism. Socially prescribed perfectionism has shown positive correlations with indicators of psychological maladjustment such as negative affect, self-blame, depression, and anxiety (particularly social anxiety); and it has shown negative correlations with indicators of psychological adjustment such as self-esteem, optimism, and satisfaction with life (Blankstein, Lumley, & Crawford, 2007;5 Frost, Heimberg, Holt, Mattia, & Neubauer, 1993;Gilbert, Durrant, & McEwan, 2006;Hewitt & Flett, 1991, 2004Nepon, Flett, Hewitt, & Molnar, 2011;Stoeber & Stoeber, 2009;Trumpeter, Watson, & O'Leary, 2006).…”

“…Perfectionism is a common personality characteristic that may affect all areas of life, including romantic relationships (Stoeber & Stoeber, 2009). However, there is one important area in which perfectionism has not yet been systematically explored: sexuality.…”