What is Perfectionism?
Some authors describe the perfectionism as a network of cognitions, where expectations, interpretations for life's events and the constant evaluation of oneself and others are found. Others defend, as a concept of perfectionism, the tendency to believe that there is a perfect solution for all problems and, furthermore, believe that this is the way to be pursued, since the error would have very consequences. severe.
Many researches nowadays seek to understand the constituent elements of perfectionism and its possible relationship with pathologies such as eating disorders, depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive behaviors and even behaviors suicidal.
Many strands of study attribute a certain tendency to the development of these behavior patterns to genetics, others place the perfectionism as a "personality trait", others still seek explanations in the social context and events throughout the growth.
There are currently instruments to measure the impact of the perfectionist tendency, such as the Multidimensional Scale of Perfectionism, developed in the early nineties by Hewitt and Flett, psychology scholars, who proposed a model of research that considered three dimensions of perfectionism: self-orientation, orientation towards the other and the social prescription of the perfectionism.
What are the types of perfectionism?
To better understand the types of perfectionism, we must pay attention to the peculiarities of each one of them. As we can understand, it is not about different patterns of behavior but about the direction of perfectionist behavior. Thus, we cannot classify a person according to a specific type, but understand what is the predominant direction of perfectionist investments.
For example, self-oriented perfectionism is the dimension that describes the direction of the perfectionist demand in own actions, that is, it is preponderant in people who are very demanding of themselves and constantly seek to be perfect.
On the other hand, perfectionism oriented towards the other, presents the same pattern of demanding behavior, but charges the people around you, such as family, friends, co-workers and employees.
There is also a third type of perfectionism: that which is socially prescribed. From this, we can understand that they would be demands coming from social norms, that is, demands of life in society taken to the extreme.
Is perfectionism a disease?
There are authors who argue that there is no form of healthy perfectionism, others propose that extreme demands can be positive in some situations, showing high adaptability. In a society where excellence and productivity are highly valued postures, we can understand why perfectionism can be seen as quality.
Anyway, what must be kept in mind is whether the perfectionist person is suffering from this behavioral tendency, which can generate high anxiety and stress. This often causes the symptoms of perfectionism to be confused with those of an obsessive-compulsive disorder.
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Perfectionism and Eating Disorders
As we have seen, the perfectionist tendency is closely linked to several psychological pathologies, including eating disorders. The social promotion of increasingly strict standards of beauty and behavior can be an aggravating factor in this situation.
The body and behaviors are compared to “examples of perfection”, impossible to be achieved, but which are seen as the only legitimate ways of being. This social situation creates conditions for perfectionism to be aggravated, causing a lot of suffering to those who invest great energy in search for perfection, through behaviors that configure Anorexia, Bulimia or even Vigorexia, which is the obsession with the body strong. The results are disastrous: damage to physical and psychological health can be fatal cases, when the demand overcomes the will to live.
Is perfectionism treated?
Some authors argue that perfectionists depend on long-term treatment so they can accept life's impossibilities and imperfections. These authors argue that perfectionism is a personality trait, generated in childhood interactions. So, in order for perfectionism to be dealt with, a person needs to be made to understand that they have very high standards. Another important part of the treatment is to provide a favorable environment so that the reduction of the requirement is understood and reinforced, which it is the great difficulty of today's society, which, as we have seen, proposes, on the contrary, extremely high standards of efficiency, quality and productivity. Among the treatment proposals are different techniques for dealing with anxiety, teaching the person to deal with the error, accepting differences and experimenting with other ways of performing activities. But, it is important to emphasize that, before any treatment, the perfectionist needs to understand that this way of acting is causing him harm and suffering, so that he can seek help.
How to find out more?
In 2008, psychologist Gordon Flett, cited as one of the scholars who developed the Multidimensional Scale of Perfectionism, gave an interview to Época magazine, which is available in the magazine's digital content, which is quite enlightening in terms of better understanding the characteristics of the perfectionism.
In addition, other texts, with accounts of the lives of perfectionist people can be quite interesting, to better understand the dimension of the suffering and confusion resulting from this tendency, among them, we can mention: “Perfectionism is not a virtue”, by author Bia Kunze, also available online.
Juliana Spinelli Ferrari
Brazil School Collaborator
Graduated in Psychology from UNESP - Universidade Estadual Paulista
Brief psychotherapy course by FUNDEB - Foundation for the Development of Bauru
Master's Student in School Psychology and Human Development at USP - University of São Paulo
