Dispositional perfectionism and well-being: A test of the 2 × 2 model of perfectionism in the sport domain.

Abstract

In the 2 2 model of dispositional perfectionism, we posit that four within-person combinations of self-oriented (SOP) and socially prescribed (SPP) perfectionism (i.e., high/high, high/low, low/high, low/low) can be distinguished on the basis of their distinct etiological and functional features. The goal of this study was to examine whether subtypes of perfectionism are distinctively associated with subjective wellbeing (i.e., positive affect, subjective vitality, and life-satisfaction) in the sport domain. Showing that pure SOP is associated with either better (Hypothesis 1a), worse (Hypothesis 1b), or equivalent (Hypothesis 1c) psychological outcomes (compared to nonperfectionism) would respectively support the potentially healthy, unhealthy, and neutral nature of SOP. Conversely to prior literature, pure SPP is hypothesized to be the most damaging subtype of perfectionism in the 2 2 model of perfectionism (Hypothesis 2). As such, the tenets of the 2 2 model differ from the literature by suggesting that mixed perfectionism is potentially less harmful compared to a subtype of pure SPP (Hypothesis 3), but potentially more harmful compared to a pure SOP (Hypothesis 4). Results of moderated multiple regression analyses have shown that pure SOP is associated with equally high levels of positive affect and vitality, and to significantly higher levels of life-satisfaction compared to nonperfectionism. Furthermore, pure SPP was associated with significantly lower levels of positive affect, vitality, and life-satisfaction compared to other subtypes of perfectionism. This study provided initial support for most of the hypotheses of the 2 2 model of perfectionism in the sport domain.