Perfection in Society
In todays society to be “perfect” one must follow society’s criteria. This criteria can depend on what type of perfection one is following. There are different types of perfection such as self oriented perfection, socially prescribed perfection, other oriented perfection, overt perfection, and covert perfection. These types of perfection are all different in how a person is “perfect”. Trying to be perfect can have its benefits but it causes mental health problems that make it not worth it. Rachel Rettner said, “Though perfection is an impossible goal, striving for it can be a boon for one's health, causing one to stick to exercise programs to a tee, say, or follow a strict regimen for treating chronic illnesses like type
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In the article “Other-oriented Perfectionism Vs. Self-oriented Perfectionism” by James Anderson, he states, “Self-oriented perfectionists have exceedingly high personal standards, strive for perfection and expect themselves to be perfect.” Anderson, James. "Other-oriented Perfectionism Vs. Self-oriented Perfectionism." ReliaWire, 14 May 2015. http://reliawire.com/other-oriented-perfectionism-vs-self-oriented-perfectionism/ This type of perfectionist can cause mental health problems in people by having them struggle to reach the standards said in the above quote. One thing that one with self oriented perfection might struggle with is low self esteem because of their high standards. Another example of the different types of perfection would be Socially Prescribed perfection. “…believe that others hold unrealistic expectations for their behavior (and that they can't live up to this); experience external pressure to be perfect, believe others evaluate them critically.” Pychyl, Timothy A. “What Flavor of Perfectionist Are You? It Matters!” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 30 Apr. 2008, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200804/what-flavor-perfectionist-are-you-it-matters. For one to believe that others want them to accomplish unrealistic standards can really affect the way someone feels about oneself. For some it might make one feel like one is unable to accomplish anything and …show more content…
Participants/ Recruitment:
The number of individuals in my targeted population is six. The genders of these six were 5 females and 1 male. The participants are within the age group of 15+. I intend to recruit my participants through finding people that I am regularly with. My participants will be interviewed personally.
II. Interview Questions
My research was gathered through interviews with the participants. My participants will have to answer a total of 10 questions about perfection. The questions are open ended questions. These questions in particular were chosen because they relate to the topic of perfection and relate with my thesis by showing that perfection can have a negative effect in the participants opinion.
III.
The mean of Maladaptive perfectionism was 2.47 (2dp) and a low SD of 0.74 (2dp). The also Low SD of Maladaptive perfectionism statistics indicate a low chance of variability in the dataset. The mean Maladaptive
As human beings, we are NOT perfect! It is part of our nature to be
The participant’s BDI scores reflected moderate depression severity in the depressed group (mean = 29.62, SD = 9.27), and no depression in the control group (mean = 3.26, SD = 3.83). To measure for the level of perfectionism of an individual the performance perfectionism scale which is a 32-item questionnaire that measures outcome expectancy for performance associated with perfectionism was used. The PPS indexes how individuals expect their perfectionism to influence their performance. To make a graph from the measurements two dimensions are used in this study include, the outcome expectancy for performance (positive or negative), and the source of the high standards for performance (self-generated or prescribed by others). Four subtypes of perfectionism are quantified in the PPS: Positive Self-Oriented Performance Perfectionism, Negative Self-Oriented Performance Perfectionism, Positive Socially Prescribed Performance Perfectionism, and Negative Socially Prescribed Performance Perfectionism. Another test was conducted to measure the depression symptoms which was called Beck depression inventory II. This test includes 21-items questionnaire and the coefficient alphas were .93 and .94 for the Cognitive and Non-Cognitive subscales, respectively. The results revealed that positive and negative outcome expectancy
Perfectionism is a common cause of low self-esteem. It is critical of every effort and convinces you that nothing is ever good enough. It can also cause you to drive yourself to the point of chronic stress, exhaustion, and burnout. Every time perfectionism counsels counsels you that you "should", "have to", or "must", you tend to push yourself forward out of anxiety, rather than from natural desire and inclination. The more perfectionistic you are, the more often you're likely to feel anxious.
Slade, P.D. Newton, T., Butler, N.M., Murphy, P. (1991) An experimental analysis of perfectionism and dissatisfaction. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 30(Pt2), 169-76.
The idea of perfection is a topic that I refuse to believe. Everyone is born with certain flaws that can be depicted throughout one’s life, these blemishes fall under the categorizations of strengths and weaknesses. Since there is always a way to get better, one must be able to identify their own personal benefits and drawbacks in order to better themselves. The person I am today is because I constantly looked for methods to improve myself. The future I am molding also consists of mending the little things about myself that still do not satisfy my personal goals and requirements.
In today’s society, everyone seems to be talking about perfection. People can talk about something simple as a “perfect” book, to something as complex and important as a “perfect” life, or a “perfect” family. But, what is perfection? Well, according to the dictionary, the definition of perfection is, “the condition, state, or quality of being free or as free as possible from all flaws or defects.” In the book, Peter Pan by J.M Barrie, the story revolves around the idea of a perfect family. This can be seen through various factors, such as the roles of Mr. and Mrs. Darling, as well as Nana, in the lives of their children. Additionally, Peter Pan decides to ask Wendy ‐with her instinct to support the younger children‐ to be his mother and take
Previous studies into perfectionist personalities detailed negative impact in the lives of maladaptive perfectionists. Distinguishing maladaptive from adaptive perfectionism, maladaptive perfectionists differ “by their excessive concerns about making mistakes and living up to the expectations of others, self-doubt(Rice and Ashby 2007)” and have issues with “self-esteem, locus of control, depression, anxiety, life satisfaction, and general psychological distress(Mobley, Slaney and Rice 2005)(Grzegorek, Slaney, Franze, and Rice 2004)”. Maladaptivity relates to the inability to be okay with failure of living up to their standards. In a separate survey on college level perfectionists, more than half of those asked about the effects of their perfectionism, said that relationships were most affected. A related researcher noted that the reason perfectionists have troubled relationships is due to their tendency to react harshly to criticism, “tendency to withdraw, so their potential i...
One of the most influential researchers in the field of perfection at the time was Hamachek. Hamachek (1978) had agreed with all those individuals who regarded perfectionism as a positive influence. He described two types of perfectionism that are on a continuum of perfectionistic behaviours- normal and neurotic. Normal perfectionists are those individuals who feel genuinely satisfied after performing a difficult task and feel the need to be less precise depending on the situation. They also understanding and possess self-acceptance that striving can indeed lead to satisfaction. Neurotic perfectionists, on the other hand, are those individuals who are unable to derive pleasure after performing a task as, according to such individuals, they never seem to perform a task good enough in order to feel satisfied. Hamachek (1978) also gave six overlapping, specific behaviours that are associated both with neurotic and normal perfectionists. These behaviours are different in their intensity and duration are as follows- (a)guilt and shame feelings, (b)self-deprecation, (c)depression, (d)shyness and procrastination, (e)a nagging feeling of “I should”, and (f)face-saving
What is flawless? In the mortal world, perfection is simply an unobtainable idea that is constantly yearned for. Society has an ever-changing notion of what perfection should look like. Considering that society, as a mass of people and opinions, does not possess a physical essence, it can sneakily force these ideas into people 's subconscious. The person who is victimized by these unearthly standards is not at fault. For example, in the short story The Birth Mark, Georgiana lived her childhood and part of her adult life oblivious to the idea that a natural mark on her face did not 'belong ' and was a detriment to her beauty; that is, until Aylmer appeared. This opinion, which he believed as fact, was forcefully sprung upon her by her newlywed
Imagine a world where everyone is perfect. Now try to recreate how they got there. It is literally impossible to meet everyone’s standards of perfection, especially society’s, because everyone views it differently. Being perfect could consist of a great personality or a good looking body. Because of the growing use of technology, the mass media have projected a certain way to look, eat, dress, and or behave. Many teenagers in today’s world are affected by society’s projection of self-image. They go through extreme measures just to look like these “perfect” people and in result; harm themselves in the process.
Within the novel Too Perfect: When Being in Control Gets Out of Control, Allan E. Mallinger and Jeannette Dewyze deliver a complete and thorough analysis of the problem that is obsessive personality. Both authors provide excellent descriptions of behaviors, underlying causes, and practical suggestions for change. In many cases, perfectionism can be rewarding, but it comes at a very large price as it interferes with one’s professional and emotional lives. It can drain energy, complicate even the simplest decisions, and take the simplicity out of life. Their message reaches a broad audience ranging from workaholics or hypochondriacs, anyone who fears change or doing the wrong thing, needs rigid rules, is excessively prudent, or simply is obstinate.
Most people have indulged in the perfect wine, made love to the perfect person while possibly wearing the perfect outfit. Or have they? Is there a such thing as perfection, if so can we attain it? No. Nothing in this world is perfect because it is impossible to create perfection. According to Plato's Theory of Forms, perfection cannot exist in the physical world but only the realm of the philosophers; the ones who choose to lurk deeper in the veiled mysteries of metaphysics.
It is often mistaken that in order to be successful, one must be a perfectionist. However, these people fail to realize success can be achieved despite their compulsive striving for high standards. Frankly, there exists evidence that proves given similar levels of talent, skill and intellect, perfectionists perform less successfully than their non-perfectionists counterparts. Perfectionists have this notion that mistakes should not be made and mistakes made will result in them as a failure or a dreadful person for letting other people down. This method of thinking forces the fear of failure on perfectionists thus causing a lot of stress for them and disappointment as they are not able to meet their...
Pacht (1984) states that perfectionists are the ones who set high standards without any reason, and they try to accomplish their goals. The perfectionists think that in truth only exists extremes but there is no middle ground. For them percentage of success as a rate of 95% or higher is a failure because they have to be 100% perfect. For example if they were given a rate they will focus on the failure rate. Perfectionism can be explained as a desire to gain the high standards of performance. But perfectionists can not fulfill their expectations so they critise themselves (Pacht, 1984). Hamachek in 1978 (as cited in Schwarz, Gairret, Araguete, & Gold, 2005) found that there are two types of perfectionists: Normal and neurotic perfectionists. Normal perfectionists are the ones who can select pleasure in normal degrees from their occupations and they need approval from others just like anyone else. They think that it is a good way to give encouragement. Encouragement is needed to become better. Normal perfectionists are the normal form of perfectionism so they can concentrate on the good ways to gather perfectionism. They have quite normal expectations from themselves. Latter one wants more performance than they can do so they become unsatisfied because they think that they can not do better as anyone else. Neurotic perfectionists are not like normal perfectionist so they are not comfortable with their performance. There were non-pathological perfectionists and pathological perfectionists. Non-pathological perfectionists are the ones who can make big standards and they believe that it is essential for perfection. Pathological perfectionists are the ones who set standards and make decisions and they have a critical concern over mistak...