Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (2022) 40:723–742

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-021-00437-9

Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive

Appraisal: A Contextual Model of Perfectionism’s
Maladaptive Nature

Ansley M. Bender1 · Amanda L. Peterson1 · Allison Schuck1 · Marc S. Karver1

Accepted: 13 November 2021 / Published online: 23 November 2021

© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature
2021

Abstract
Perfectionism is highly and increasingly prevalent and is associated with concerning
outcomes, including risk factors for suicidal ideation. However, it is not yet known
under what conditions or through what mechanism perfectionism comes to be par-
ticularly maladaptive. Self-discrepancy theory suggests that perfectionism may
be more maladaptive in the context of negative life events, through a pathway of
appraisals of falling short of standards; this remains unstudied. To test this model,
perfectionism, negative life events, appraisals, and demoralization were measured
in a sample of 320 participants. The mediational pathway was supported, and per-
fectionism presented as a robust risk factor for both demoralization and appraisals
of falling short of standards regardless of experience of recent negative life events.
Indeed, perfectionism contributed far more variance to demoralization than this
well-established risk factor. These results have clinical implications, in that perfec-
tionism may meaningfully influence mental health outcomes even in the absence of
activating life stressors, and this pathway may benefit from cognitive intervention.
This study builds on extant literature to reveal an important mechanism by which
perfectionism may lead to concerning outcomes, and establishes perfectionism as a
consequential vulnerability factor independent of, and even relative to, negative life
events.

Keywords Socially prescribed perfectionism · Demoralization · Appraisals ·

Discrepancy · Negative life events

* Ansley M. Bender
ansley3@usf.edu
1
Department of Psychology, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Ave. PCD 4118G,
Tampa, FL 33620, USA

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724 A. M. Bender et al.

Introduction

Research suggests that perfectionism, and particularly socially prescribed perfec-

tionism (Hewitt & Flett, 1991), is associated with various maladaptive outcomes,
including severe psychopathology and even suicidal thoughts and behaviors (e.g.,
Brocklesby, 2017; Smith et al., 2016, 2018a). Alarmingly, perfectionism appears to
be increasing in prevalence over time (Curran & Hill, 2019), suggesting a need to
better understand this individual difference factor. However, the literature is lack-
ing a theoretically informed model of how perfectionism comes to be particuarly
maladaptive, and in what contexts, making it difficult to identify points of interven-
tion or areas for more intensive research along this pathway. This study seeks to
address this gap, by proposing and testing a cognitive model of risk informed by
the framework of self-discrepancy theory (e.g., Higgins, 1987). It is proposed that
the unrealistically high standards characteristic of perfectionism may predispose one
to appraisals of having fallen short of these standards, particularly in the context of
negative life events—which may themselves be perceived as evidence of shortcom-
ing—ultimately culminating in an affective state of defeat, despair, and perceived
failure. This is the first study to investigate this integrated model.

Perfectionism

Perfectionism, broadly defined as the combination of excessively high standards

with an overly critical self-evaluation (Frost et al., 1990), is highly (Grzegorek et al.,
2004; Herman et al., 2011; Rice et al., 2011) and increasingly (Curran & Hill, 2019;
Flett & Hewitt, 2014; Portešová & Urbánek, 2013) prevalent. Notably, perfection-
ism may at times be a desirable trait, insomuch as it is associated with organiza-
tion, goal setting, and motivation (Amodeo, 2014; Hewitt & Flett, 1991). Simulta-
neously, however, perfectionism has been found to relate to prospective increases
in hopelessness, depression, anxiety, nonsuicidal self-injury, and suicidal ideation
(Brocklesby, 2017; Chang & Rand, 2000; Enns et al., 2001; Flett et al., 1995; Smith
et al., 2016, 2018a). A growing body of research suggests that these maladaptive
outcomes may be primarily due to a specific dimension of perfectionism—namely,
socially prescribed perfectionism (Hewitt & Flett, 1991). Socially prescribed perfec-
tionism refers to the perception of high standards or expectations from others, rather
than simply a tendency to set such standards for oneself. Supporting its pernicious
nature, this dimension of perfectionism has been associated with outcomes ranging
from negative affect and lowered self-esteem to depression, anxiety, anorexia ner-
vosa, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors (Klibert et al., 2005; Limburg et al., 2017;
Smith et al., 2018a). While understudied, there is compelling reason to believe these
findings may reflect a relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and
demoralization.

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Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 725

Association Between Perfectionism and Demoralization

As individuals experience increasing socially prescribed perfectionism, they may

begin to feel increasingly demoralized. Demoralization refers to an affective state of
subjective incompetence, helplessness, despair, and defeat, theorized to reflect per-
ceived failure to effectively cope with actual or appraised stressors (Frank, 1974;
Kissane et al., 2004). Socially prescribed perfectionism may be associated with
demoralization simply because the high expectations are perceived as overwhelming
and impossible to meet, while failure is viewed as conferring severe consequences.
The individual may feel trapped between—on the one hand—burnout (Childs &
Stoeber, 2010) from striving to meet seemingly unachievable standards and—on
the other hand—the perceived implications of relinquishing standards (e.g., poten-
tially deteriorating social support or disappointing close others; Conroy et al., 2007).
Accordingly, the individual may begin to feel demoralized and hopeless in the face
of this nonchoice. Despite the high degree of conceptual overlap between perfec-
tionism and demoralization, no known studies have examined this relationship. This
is not an insignificant gap, as demoralization itself has been linked to suicidal idea-
tion (Anestis et al., 2018; Fang et al., 2014) and suicide risk (Anestis et al., 2018).
Nonetheless, there is some preliminary support suggesting a relationship from per-
fectionism to the related construct of defeat (Wetherall et al., 2018). However, this
research is in need of updating, and several important questions remain.
Given the prevalence of perfectionism, it is essential to clarify how it might
bring about maladaptive outcomes, and for whom in particular. If mechanisms
operate along the pathway from perfectionism to demoralization, this may present
as an opportunity for intervention, particularly if those mechanisms are more muta-
ble than this relatively stable personality trait (Hewitt & Flett, 1991). Likewise, if
socially prescribed perfectionism is particularly pernicious for certain individuals,
or in certain environments, understanding those patterns contributing to vulnerabil-
ity might facilitate more targeted intervention and prevention.

Mediation by Appraisals of Falling Short of Standards

Perfectionism may lead to demoralization through a cognitive pathway of apprais-

als of falling short of standards. That is, as individuals report increasingly elevated
socially prescribed perfectionism, they may be increasingly likely to appraise fail-
ure to meet standards. This would be consistent with Higgins’s (1987) Self-Discrep-
ancy Theory, which proposes that individuals monitor for discrepancies between
their ideal selves (who they would ideally like to be, informed by internal values
and aspirations), ought selves (who they believe others would like them to be), and
actual selves (who they perceive themselves to currently be). When discrepancies
are appraised, the individual is theorized to experience aversive negative affect (e.g.,
guilt, worthlessness, disappointment, etc.; Higgins, 1987). In this way, individuals
with socially prescribed perfectionism, who value meeting standards to a greater
degree and who perceive higher, perhaps unrealistic, standards (Hewitt & Flett,

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726 A. M. Bender et al.

1991), may be more prone to appraising having fallen short of these standards, and
experiencing subsequent demoralization as a result. This relationship remains under-
studied, but research suggests that perfectionism does predict cognitions related to
discrepancy generally (e.g., Smith et al., 2018b). There is likewise reason to believe
that appraisals of falling short of standards may contribute to demoralization.
There is no known empirical research investigating the link between appraisals
of falling short of standards and demoralization; nonetheless, there is substantial
theoretical support for this relationship. Indeed, early theoretical conceptualizations
of demoralization considered it to stem directly from perceptions of failing to meet
one’s own or others’ expectations (Frank, 1974). As stated, current definitions pre-
sent demoralization as a perceived inability to meet expectations for coping with
adversity (Kissane et al., 2004). To this end, as individuals increasingly appraise
having falling short of standards, they may experience increasing demoralization.
Supporting this possibility, empirical work has found that similar appraisals are
associated with the related affective state of defeat (Johnson et al., 2011).

The Influence of Negative Life Events

Although perfectionism is quite common and has the potential to bring about myr-
iad concerning outcomes, it is clear that not everyone who is high in this trait will
end up demoralized. To this end, there may exist unique factors or environments
that potentiate vulnerability. Namely, individuals with elevated socially prescribed
perfectionism may be particularly likely to appraise falling short of standards in
the context of negative life events, as these may signify failure to effectively meet
standards. While presently unstudied in relation to these appraisals or demoraliza-
tion, extant empirical research does support that negative life events potentiate the
relationships between perfectionism and depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts
and behaviors (e.g., Dean & Range, 1996; Hewitt et al., 2002; O’Connor & Haw-
ton, 2010). Notably, negative life events on their own are known to predict greater
demoralization (e.g., Evans et al., 1987; Tein et al., 2000). Therefore, there is pre-
liminary support for the proposal that negative life events may strengthen the perni-
cious effects of socially prescribed perfectionism on demoralization, but it remains
unknown by what pathway this might emerge.

Study Objectives and Hypotheses

The aims of the current study are to propose and test a novel integrated pathway,
uniquely examining the relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and
demoralization, as well as the contribution of specific appraisals in this pathway (i.e.,
appraisals of falling short of standards). To this end, we evaluated whether apprais-
als of falling short of standards mediated the relationship between perfectionism and
demoralization, and whether negative life events moderated the effect of perfection-
ism on demoralization and appraisals of falling short of standards (Fig. 1). Further,
given that socially prescribed perfectionism had not previously been examined in
relation to demoralization, we sought to evaluate the unique variance contributed by

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Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 727

Negative Life Events

Appraisals of Falling
Short of Standards

Socially Prescribed
Perfectionism Demoralization

Fig. 1  The proposed theoretical model

socially prescribed perfectionism to demoralization after accounting for that contrib-

uted by the more established risk factor of negative life events. Our hypotheses were
as follows:

H1 Appraisals of falling short of standards would mediate the relationship between

socially prescribed perfectionism and demoralization.

H2 Negative life events would moderate the relationship between socially pre-
scribed perfectionism and demoralization.

H3 Negative life events would moderate the mediating effect of appraisals of falling
short of standards in the relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and
demoralization.

H4 Socially prescribed perfectionism will contribute significant additional variance

to demoralization after controlling for negative life events.

Methods

Participants

Sample size was determined with consideration to calculations of statistical power

using G*POWER 3.1.9.2. Power analysis was based on the ability to detect the addi-
tional variance accounted for by the proposed two-way interaction term. The power
analysis indicated that a sample size of 199 would be needed to detect a small to
medium effect (ΔR2 = 0.04) with power = 0.80 and α = 0.05. A total of 364 partici-
pants were recruited from an online participant pool at a university in the South-
eastern United States. A total of 320 participants passed all attention check tests,
so this sample was used in final analyses. The included participants had a mean age
of 21.18 (SD = 4.10) and were primarily female (81.6%) and heterosexual (82.8%).

13
728 A. M. Bender et al.

The sample was relatively diverse with regards to race and ethnicity, with 44.7%
of participants identifying as Caucasian, 14.4% identifying as Hispanic or Latino,
9.7% identifying as Asian or Asian American, 8.4% identifying as Black or Afri-
can American, 3.8% identifying as Arabic or Middle Eastern, 2.8% identifying as
another race or ethnicity, and the remaining 16.2% of participants identifying as
multiracial. Additional demographic information can be found in Table 1.

Measures

Socially Prescribed Perfectionism

The Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS) is a 45-item self-report measure

of perfectionism developed by Hewitt & Flett (1990). The scale has demonstrated
good reliability and validity (Hewitt & Flett, 1991; Hewitt et al., 1991). Responses
are given on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from “Disagree” to “Agree;” a summed
score was used in the present study, with greater responses indicating a greater
degree of endorsement of perfectionism. An example item is “People expect nothing
less than perfection from me.” In the present sample, Cronbach’s α was 0.85.

Appraisals of Falling Short of Standards

A modified version of the Scale for Assessing Appraisal Components (Smith

& Lazarus, 1993) was used to assess appraisals of falling short of standards. The
original eight-item scale assesses various appraisal dimensions using a nine-point
Likert scale, anchored from 1, “Not at all,” to 9, “Extremely much.” The original
scale has demonstrated good reliability and validity (Bennett et al., 2003; Smith &
Lazarus, 1993). For the present study, one item, reflecting one appraisal dimension,
motivational incongruence, was used and adapted with consultation to the author
and the literature. Motivational incongruence refers to the degree to which an event
was counter to what the individual desired. In order to better reflect falling short
of standards, this item was adapted to read “To what extent did the results of this
event fall short of your standards or expectations?” This adapted item was developed
based on prior measures (Bissell & Rask, 2010; Heidrich, 1999).

Demoralization

The Demoralization Scale (DS) is a 24-item self-report measure of feelings of state

demoralization. The scale has established good reliability and validity (Kissane
et al., 2004; Mehnert et al., 2011; Mullane et al., 2009). Respondents used a 5-point
Likert scale ranging from 0, “Never,” to 4, “All the Time,” to indicate how often in
the previous 2 weeks they felt various features of demoralization. The scale produces
five subscales, measuring “Dysphoria,” “Loss of meaning and purpose,” “Disheart-
enment,” “Helplessness,” and “Sense of failure.” Example items from each scale are,
respectively, “I have a lot of regret about my life,” “My life seems to be pointless,”
“I feel trapped by what is happening to me,” “I feel that I cannot help myself,” and “I

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Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 729

Table 1  Sample demographics

Age M = 21.18, SD = 4.10

Gender n (%) Female 261 (82%)
Male 56 (18%)
Neither 3 (0.9%)
Transgender n (%) No 315 (98%)
Yes 5 (1.6%)
Sexual orientation n (%) Heterosexual 265 (83%)
Bisexual 35 (11%)
Gay/Lesbian 11 (3.4%)
Asexual 1 (0.3%)
Other 8 (2.5%)
Race/ethnicity n (%) Caucasian 143 (44%)
Hispanic/Latinx 46 (14%)
Asian/Asian–American 31 (9.7%)
Black/African–American 27 (8.4%)
Arabic/middle Eastern 12 (3.8%)
More than 1 race 51 (16%)
Other 9 (2.8%)
First-generation college student n No 230 (72%)
(%)
Yes 90 (28%)
Other 1 (0.3%)
Year n (%) Freshman 76 (24%)
Sophomore 79 (25%)
Junior 84 (26%)
Senior 62 (19%)
Year 5 + 15 (4.7%)
Living arrangement n (%) Off-campus house or apartment 136 (43%)
On-campus residence hall 91 (28%)
At home with family 90 (28%)
Fraternity or sorority 2 (0.6%)
Other 1 (0.3%)
Marital and relationship status n Single 180 (56%)
(%)
In relationship and not living with partner 98 (31%)
In relationship and living with partner 32 (10%)
Married 8 (2.5%)
Widowed 1 (0.3%)
Other 1 (0.3%)

am proud of my accomplishments (reversed).” The total score is produced by sum-

ming the items, and subscale scores are produced by summing the items within the

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730 A. M. Bender et al.

subscales. The DS demonstrated good internal consistency in the present sample,

with a Cronbach’s α of 0.95.

Negative Life Events

The Life Events Scale for Students (LESS; Clements & Turpin, 1996; Linden, 1984)
is a 36-item measure of self-reported experiencing of significant life events. The
scale demonstrates good reliability and validity (Clements & Turpin, 1996; Linden,
1984). For the present study, 25 items that have been identified by three independent
raters in a prior investigation (Covault et al., 2007) to be negative, rather than neu-
tral or ambiguous, were used. Additionally, minor adaptations—such as removing
appraisals—were made on four items (e.g., “Getting an unjustified low mark on a
test” was adapted to read “Getting a low mark on a test”). Respondents indicated if
they have experienced the given events or not by answering “Yes,” or “No.” Exam-
ple items include, “Minor car accident” and “Minor violation of the law.” The scale
is summed to produce a total score indicating number of life events experienced in
the past year. Given that the LESS represents a formative measurement model, inter-
nal consistency is not assumed or expected (Bollen, 1984).

Procedure

Before beginning the study, participants provided IRB-approved informed consent

using an online form. This online informed consent document provided participants
information about study involvement, such as potential risks, potential benefits,
background, purpose of study, study procedure, participant rights, and confidential-
ity policies. Participants who provided informed consent then began the study and
completed the measures. The study took approximately 30 min to complete. Partici-
pants received course credit for participating and were allowed to end the study at
any time without penalty. After completion of the study, participants were debriefed.
The online debriefing form included further detail on the purpose of the study, con-
tact information for the study investigator, and a list of campus and community-
based mental health resources that the participant could utilize.

Data Analysis

Items from the MPS, LESS, and DS measures were summed to produce a total score
and respective subscale scores as relevant to the measure. Descriptive statistics were
run on demographic and study variables, to characterize the sample and to review
means, standard deviations, skewness, and kurtosis. Variable distributions were
assessed for normality and outliers. Pearson correlation coefficients were produced
to examine the relationship of study variables.
To evaluate the degree to which appraisal mediated the effects of perfection-
ism on demoralization, mediation analyses were conducted using bootstrapped
samples in the PROCESS Macro (Hayes, 2013), as recommended by Preacher

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Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 731

and Hayes (2004). To evaluate the degree to which negative life events mod-
erated the relationship of perfectionism and demoralization and the mediating
effect of appraisals of falling short of standards, moderated mediation analy-
ses were conducted in the PROCESS Macro (Hayes, 2013). The bootstrap con-
fidence intervals (CIs) determine whether the effects are significant, based on
10,000 random samples. Mediation is considered tenable if the CIs do not con-
tain zero. Perfectionism, negative life events, and appraisals were mean-cen-
tered prior to analyses. Finally, to clarify the unique effects of study variables,
a hierarchical linear regression was conducted using standardized regression
coefficients.
Given that the present data represents cross-sectional data, the present study
is limited to statistical mediation (Disabato, 2016). Nonetheless, substantial the-
ory and empirical research supports the order of the hypothesized mediational
model. First, the order of this model is consistent with the reviewed framework
of theory of self-discrepancy (e.g., Higgins, 1987), in which the individual val-
ues and strives to meet standards, and monitors for perceived discrepancies from
standards; when discrepancies are appraised, the individual is theorized to expe-
rience aversive affect, akin to demoralization. This is also consistent with theo-
retical conceptualizations of demoralization, which consider it to occur second-
ary to perceived inability to meet standards (Frank, 1974; Kissane et al., 2004).
Second, empirical work supports the trait-like, enduring nature of perfectionism
(Hewitt & Flett, 1991), whereas demoralization appears to be more state-like—
fluctuating over time and sensitive to changes in environment (Kissane et al.,
2004, 2011; Marsa et al., 2017; Zanicotti et al., 2012); this would support the
influence of the former on the latter, rather than vice versa. Prospective research
examining the relationship between perfectionism and other outcomes (e.g.,
depressive symptoms) supports this directional effect (Sherry et al., 2013; Smith
et al., 2018b). While demoralization and appraisals of falling short of standards
may reciprocally influence one another, the proposed cognitive pathway to this
primarily affective outcome would be consistent with substantial theory (e.g.,
Beck, 1964; Folkman & Lazarus, 1984). Importantly, experimental research sup-
ports a directional relationship in comparable constructs (Johnson et al., 2011).
Thus, while the present study is limited to statistical mediation, the proposed
model is supported by theory and preliminary empirical work.

Results

Preliminary Results

Means, standard deviations, skew, kurtosis, and correlations are presented in

Table 2. The skewness and kurtosis values showed that all variables were nor-
mally distributed (i.e., skewness <|2.0| and kurtosis <|7.0|; Hancock & Muel-
ler, 2010). The results show that socially prescribed perfectionism was posi-
tively associated with appraisals of falling short of standards (p < 0.01) and

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732 A. M. Bender et al.

Table 2  Descriptive statistics and intercorrelations of study variables

Mean SD Skew Kurtosis 1 2 3 4

1. MPS 58.32 14.01 0.13 0.21 1

2. LESS 4.34 2.74 0.98 1.66 .04 1
3. ­Appa 6.39 1.60 − 0.59 0.32 .17** .06 1
4. DS 25.06 18.01 0.97 0.70 .36** .20** .16** 1

All correlations are Pearson’s r. Note the sample for this correlation table is N = 320, except where noted
MPS Multidimensional perfectionism scale, LESS life events scale for Students, App appraisals of falling
short of standards, DS demoralization scale
**
p < .01
a-N = 308

demoralization (p < 0.01). Similarly, appraisals of falling short of standards were

positively associated with demoralization (p < 0.01).

Testing for Mediation Effect

To test H1, mediation analyses were conducted using Model 4 in the PROCESS
Macro (Hayes, 2013). Results of these analyses indicated that the indirect main
effect of socially prescribed perfectionism on demoralization through appraisal of
falling short of standards was significant [ab = 0.0214, 95% CI (0.0006, 0.0605)].
While Model 3 indicated that the b pathway was not significant (p = 0.06), this is not
required for mediation to be present (Hayes, 2013). The direct pathway from socially
prescribed perfectionism to demoralization, although decreased, remained signifi-
cant, suggesting partial mediation. Together, the variables accounted for 13.89% of
the variance in demoralization (R2 = 0.14) (see Table 3).

Table 3  Testing the mediation effect of appraisals of falling short of standards on the relationship
between perfectionism and demoralization
Predictors Model 1 (DS) Model 2 (App) Model 3 (DS)
B (SD) t B (SD) t B (SD) t

MPS 0.47 (1.20) 6.95** 0.02 (0.11) 2.93** 0.44 (1.23) 6.36***
App 1.14 (10.71) 1.88
R2 .13 .03 .14
F 48.27*** 8.57** 24.60***

MPS multidimensional perfectionism scale, LESS life events scale for students, App appraisals of falling
short of standards, DS demoralization scale
**
p < .01
***
p < .001

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Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 733

Testing for Moderated Mediation

To test H2 and H3, moderated mediation analyses were conducted using Model 8 in
the PROCESS Macro (Hayes, 2013). In Model 1, only socially prescribed perfec-
tionism predicted appraisals of falling short of standards, with no significant effect
from negative life events or the interaction term. Similarly, in Model 2, the interac-
tion term was not significant, and the b pathway from appraisals to demoralization
remained nonsignificant. Indeed, the indirect effect was no longer significant after
including negative life events in the model [ab at mean negative life events = 0.0185,
95% CI (− 0.0008, 0.0566)]. In contrast, both socially prescribed perfectionism
and negative life events significantly related to demoralization as a main effect
(see Table 4).

Comparing Unique Effects

To test H4 and clarify the unique effects of socially prescribed perfectionism and
negative life events on demoralization, a hierarchical linear regression was run
with standardized coefficients. In the first step, negative life events was entered as
a predictor of demoralization. In the second step, socially prescribed perfectionism
was added as a predictor. After controlling for negative life events, socially pre-
scribed perfectionism’s standardized effect on demoralization (β = 0.36, p < 0.01)
was twice that of negative life events (β = 0.18, p < 0.01). Further, Model 2, which
included socially prescribed perfectionism, accounted for 12% more variance in
demoralization than Model 1 (R2 = 0.04), which included negative life events alone
(see Table 5).

Table 4  Testing the moderated Predictors Model 1 (App) Model 2 (DS)

mediation effects of negative
life events B (SD) t B (SD) t

MPS 0.02 (0.11) 2.78** 0.43 (1.21) 6.25***

App 1.01 (10.53) 1.67
LESS 0.03 (0.61) 0.98 1.18 (6.34) 3.26**
MPS X LESS 0.002 (0.04) 0.60 0.02 (0.46) 0.73
R2 .03 .17
F 3.34* 15.66***

MPS multidimensional perfectionism scale, LESS life events scale

for students, App appraisals of falling short of standards, DS demor-
alization scale
*
p < .05
**
p < .01
***
p < .001

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734 A. M. Bender et al.

Table 5  Comparing main effects Predictors Model 1 (DS) Model 2 (DS)

β (SD) t β (SD) t

LESS 0.20 (6.48) 3.62** 0.18 (6.05) 3.58**

MPS 0.36 (1.18) 6.92**
R2 .04 .16
F 13.07** 47.87**

MPS multidimensional perfectionism scale, LESS life events scale

for students, DS demoralization scale
**
p < .01

Discussion

The goal of the current research was to test the cognitive mechanisms and contextual
influences that may heighten the maladaptive effects of perfectionism. This will be
an important area of continued research, as rates of perfectionism have steadily risen
over the past 30 years (Curran & Hill, 2019), and perfectionism’s contributions to
deleterious outcomes such as suicidal thoughts and behaviors is only just beginning
to be understood (e.g., Smith et al., 2018a). To this end, a substantial strength of the
present study was the consideration of demoralization as a downstream consequence
of perfectionism—indeed, as the first study to do so. Not only is demoralization dis-
criminable from depression (e.g., Jacobsen et al., 2006; Mehnert et al., 2011), but
it appears to present as a risk factor for suicide above and beyond depression (e.g.,
Fang et al., 2014; Vehling et al., 2017). While all data was collected at the same time
point, we used statistical mediation to test underlying contextual mechanisms sup-
ported by considerable literature. As such, although this study cannot support causal
conclusions about associations among variables, these results set a compelling foun-
dation upon which more advanced methodologies may build in future research.
We proposed that perfectionism would increasingly relate to demoralization as
individuals reported increasing negative life events, through a pathway of apprais-
als of falling short of standards. As hypothesized, greater socially prescribed per-
fectionism predicted greater demoralization. However, perfectionism’s relationship
with demoralization was robust regardless of one’s experience of recent negative
life events. In fact, perfectionism was found to have a substantially larger effect on
demoralization than negative life events, an established vulnerability factor. The pre-
sent results suggest that this relatively stable trait may merit concern even in the
absence of recent life stressors, and indeed may account for far greater variance in
demoralization than negative life events. This is somewhat surprising; it is not nec-
essarily intuitive that an individual who consistently presents with high concern for
perceived standards, expectations, and pressures from others would be at greater
risk for demoralization than an individual who had, say, recently broken up with a
partner, failed an academic course, or experienced direct or passive victimization,
as the present results would suggest. Nonetheless, a minority of studies have found
support for the pernicious effects of perfectionism on other maladaptive outcomes,

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Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 735

independent of and relative to negative life events (e.g., Dean & Range, 1999;
Hewitt & Ediger, 1996, Hewitt et al., 2002; O’Connor & Hawton, 2010). This may
speak to the nefarious, and overlooked, effects of socially prescribed perfectionism.
An important direction for future research will be clarifying these effects.
There are several compelling reasons perfectionism may surpass negative life
events in its relationship with demoralization and other concerning outcomes. While
negative life events may prompt responses from the individual or environment which
facilitate resilience, perfectionism may be unlikely to do so. Consider, for instance,
that negative life events may be noticed by, and accordingly generate support from,
one’s social environment; someone who has recently experienced a personal injury
or illness, who has lost a close friend, or who has gotten in a car accident, among
other such negative life events, may receive greater support and concern from a
social support network (e.g., Antonovsky, 1979; Hallaraker et al., 2001). Further-
more, these events may prompt meaning-making, insight, or other adaptive appraisal
attempts (McFarland & Alvaro, 2000; Tugade & Fredrickson, 2004). Likewise, indi-
viduals may be able to recognize that they have experienced a negative life event and
respond with other increased coping efforts (Folkman & Lazarus, 1980, 1985; Folk-
man et al., 1986). In contrast, socially prescribed perfectionism lacks any activating
event to prompt such external support or internal coping. Individuals high in socially
prescribed perfectionism may—at times correctly (Smith et al., 2017a, b)—perceive
external standards as veridical, or may have little insight into their perfectionism
(Sironic & Reeve, 2012). If individuals do not regularly, consciously process that
they perceive disproportionately high standards or external pressures from others,
that they distort and disproportionately fear the consequences of failure, or that
they discount and feel less satisfaction from the progress they have made, among
other features, it may be difficult to reappraise or otherwise cope with these features.
Moreover, those effects of perfectionism that are likely to be noticed externally (i.e.,
high achievement striving, ambitious goals) may garner reinforcement in the form of
praise or admiration, rather than empathy, support, or assistance from the environ-
ment (e.g., Slade & Owens, 1998). Indeed, an individual who highly values a perfec-
tionistic self-presentation (Chen et al., 2015) may be viewed as more self-sufficient
and capable (e.g., apparent competence; Linehan, 1993) and less likely to need sup-
port. Simultaneously, socially prescribed perfectionism is associated with negative
social interactions (Flett et al., 1997; Hill & Turlington, 1997), which may actually
attenuate the responsiveness of one’s social network. In this way, socially prescribed
perfectionism may predict concerning outcomes such as demoralization to a much
greater degree than recent negative life events.
In addition, the present study was among the first to examine how appraisals may
operate in contributing to the pernicious effects of perfectionism. Informed by the-
ory of self-discrepancy (e.g., Higgins, 1987), the proposed model was partially sup-
ported. Appraisals of falling short of standards partially mediated the relationship
between perfectionism and demoralization. This is consistent with conceptualiza-
tions of perfectionism, which consider it to be characterized by unrealistically high
standards (Burns, 1980; Frost et al., 1990; Hamachek, 1978; Hewitt & Flett, 1989),
fear of falling short of standards (e.g. Burns, 1980; Conroy et al., 2007), and an
overly critical evaluation of progress towards standards (Grzegorek et al., 2004; Rice

13
736 A. M. Bender et al.

et al., 2011). This is likewise consistent with prior studies which in turn have found
appraisals of falling short of standards to predict guilt, anger, sadness, decreased
positive affect, emotional lability, and prospective distress and depression (Bennett
et al., 2003; Coo et al., 2015; Mitchelson, 2009). Most compellingly, research finds
socially prescribed perfectionism to be predictive of prospective depressive symp-
toms, mediated by appraisals of falling short of others’ standards (Sherry et al.,
2013; Smith et al., 2018b). Despite this preliminary support, the role of appraisals of
falling short of standards broadly has been severely neglected in the literature, high-
lighting the need for further research.
As noted, the present results supported partial mediation, suggesting that
socially prescribed perfectionism may still contribute to demoralization directly
or indirectly. For instance, socially prescribed perfectionism may contribute to
demoralization through an interpersonal pathway, as this dimension of perfec-
tionism has been found to predict increased interpersonal conflict (Mushquash &
Sherry, 2012), anticipatory fear of interpersonal consequences of failure (Con-
roy et al., 2007), and competition with peers (Neumeister & Finch, 2006), among
other social effects. Intrapersonally, socially prescribed perfectionism may relate
to demoralization through its association with burnout and exhaustion (Childs &
Stoeber, 2010) or poorer problem solving and coping skills (Flett et al., 1996).
These and other mechanisms remain to be adequately tested. Given that the par-
tial mediation effect by appraisals of falling short of standards was no longer
significant upon the addition of negative life events to the model, it will also
be important to clarify whether life events themselves, associated appraisals, or
both are particularly relevant in mediating perfectionism’s effects. The present
study sets the foundation for future research to consider these and other possible
directions.

Clinical Implications

The current study may have clinical implications. Specifically, as the prevalence
of perfectionism continues to rise, clinicians may be advised to assess for the
presence of perfectionism in clients, particularly as evidenced by perceptions
of unrealistic standards or expectations from others. Indeed, the present study
suggests that this may be just as important as assessing for clients’ experiences
of recent negative life events. Targeting clients’ appraisals of having fallen short
of standards—for instance, through cognitive interventions aimed at reducing
distorted thinking (e.g., Egan & Shafran, 2017; Flett & Hewitt, 2008; Rozen-
tal et al., 2017)—may be one way of reducing the relationship between socially
prescribed perfectionism and maladaptive outcomes such as demoralization.
Notably, clinicians should be aware that perfectionism may increase vulner-
ability to these maladaptive outcomes even in the absence of recent negative
life events. Further, not only is perfectionism potentially relevant for a client’s
mental health, but it may also inform treatment approach and progress; prior
research has found that perfectionism predicts lower treatment satisfaction and

13
Perfectionism, Negative Life Events, and Cognitive Appraisal:… 737

less clinical improvement in response to therapy (Blatt, 1995; Blatt et al., 1998;
Hewitt et al., 2017; Shahar et al., 2004). Those with elevated perfectionism tend
to strive for a perfectionistic self-presentation and are often averse to disclosing
any difficulties or challenges which may be perceived as flaws or imperfections
(e.g., Chen et al., 2012; Hewitt et al., 2003). Accordingly, it may be especially
important that the therapist spend adequate time developing a strong therapeutic
alliance with these clients to facilitate honest disclosure. Considered alongside
this prior research, the present results support the importance of assessing for
and intervening on perfectionism.

Limitations

First, the cross-sectional nature of the data limits the study to statistical media-
tion. However, to account for this limitation, all models were run in reverse direc-
tion; the regression pathways and indirect effects were consistently greater in the
hypothesized direction than they were in the reverse. Further, as reviewed, this
directionality is consistent with extant literature. While longitudinal and experi-
mental research is needed to further test our results, the current study presents
as a meaningful theoretical contribution, as the first study to examine the rela-
tionship of perfectionism and demoralization, and mechanisms therein. Second,
the study is limited by using self-report survey data, which may be vulnerable to
inaccurate responding and social desirability effects. However, the use of atten-
tion checks and the anonymous nature of the study may reduce these respective
risks. Further, considerable research suggests greater disclosure on such measures
relative to other methodologies, particularly for potentially sensitive topics (Cor-
rigan & Watson, 2002). Similarly, self-report data tends to be more predictive of
internalizing processes relative to observer reports (Manassis et al., 2009). None-
theless, future studies are encouraged to develop and employ alternate method-
ologies, such as interviews, academic records, or behavioral observations. This
is especially true for the measure of appraisal used in the present study; while
face valid and adapted in consultation with the author and the literature, it will
be advantageous to employ a well-validated measure to confirm these findings.
Third, the use of a college sample limits generalizability of the present findings.
It may be compelling to test this model in more diverse populations, such as those
who are older or younger, those who are in or out of the workforce, or those of
marginalized identities (e.g., those identifying as LGBTQ), among others. How-
ever, the distinct nature of a college sample may make it particularly appropriate
for the present study, given heightened perfectionism in college samples (Grze-
gorek et al., 2004). In addition to addressing these limitations, a compelling pos-
sibility is that socially prescribed perfectionism may be exacerbated by specific
negative life events (e.g., life events related to domains for which one has specifi-
cally set high standards).

13
738 A. M. Bender et al.

Conclusions

Socially prescribed perfectionism was found to be associated with demoralization to

a greater degree than—and even in the absence of—negative life events. In consid-
ering the cognitive mechanism of perfectionism’s effects, appraisals of falling short
of standards may be particularly relevant. These present results contribute to the
broader literature on perfectionism, which has begun to reveal its subtle, but perni-
cious, consequences. This study serves as a foundation from which more complex
research questions may be proposed and, eventually, from which clinical applica-
tions may be developed and implemented.

Author Contributions AB: Conceptualization, formal analysis, writing, tables and figures. AP: writing,
review and editing, supervision. AS: writing, review and editing, supervision. MK: Investigation, meth-
odology, resources, writing, supervision.

Funding No funds, grants, or other support was received.

Data Availability The datasets generated during and analyzed during the current study are available from
the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Code Availability The code produced to analyze the date in the current study is available from the cor-
responding author on reasonable request.

Declarations

Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval The questionnaire and methodology for this study was approved by the Institutional
Review Board Research Integrity and Compliance committee of the University of South Florida
(Pro00038577). This study was performed in accordance with the ethical standards as instituted in the
1964 Declaration of Helsinki.

Consent to Participate Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the
study.

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