Investigating multi-dimensional perfectionism and the quality of life in students completing a Bachelor of Education degree at Memorial University of Newfoundland

Manning, Robert J. E. (2006) Investigating multi-dimensional perfectionism and the quality of life in students completing a Bachelor of Education degree at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

Perfectionism has been identified as a pervasive trait that can be found in a wide range of people. Growing research support suggests that this trait, which used to be considered one-dimensional, has multi-dimensional (i.e., negative and positive) aspects. According to Slaney, Rice, Mobley, Trippi, and Ashby (2001), setting high standards and having high orderliness qualities are the defining positive aspects of perfectionism. Discrepancy, the difference perceived between the high standards that a person sets and the actual performance that the person perceives him or herself displaying, is the defining negative aspect of perfectionism. -- This thesis studied the prevalence of multi-dimensional perfectionism in undergraduate education students and sought to determine how perfectionism related to their perceived quality of life and their GPA performance. Subjects (75 undergraduate education students) completed the Almost Perfect Scale - Revised (APS-R) questionnaire (developed in 1997 by Slaney, Mobley, Trippi, Ashby, & Johnson) and as predicted by the instrument developers, three groups were identified, namely, adaptive perfectionists, maladaptive perfectionists and non-perfectionists. -- Subjects also completed a brief World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF), developed by the World Health Organization, to assess their perceived quality of life based on the two weeks prior to the administration of the questionnaire. It was found that the maladaptive perfectionists, as compared to adaptive perfectionists, on average, had a significantly lower perceived quality of life in three of the quality of life domains assessed, namely the Physical Health Domain, the Psychological Health Domain, and the Social Relationships Domain. It was also discovered that the Discrepancy Subscale of the APS-R had a weak negative correlation to the Physical Health Domain, the Psychological Health Domain, and the Social Relationships Domain. No other significant differences were found in perceived quality of life for any of the other multi-dimensional group comparisons and no relationships were found between the type of perfectionism displayed and the GP A scores achieved. -- The implications of these findings for both counsellors and classroom teachers are discussed and suggestions for future research are offered.

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