Healthy and Unhealthy Dimensions of Perfectionism: Perfectionism and Mental Health in Hungarian Adults

Perfectionism is a multidimensional personality trait that may covary with both negative and positive indices of mental health. Different components of perfectionism might be associated in different ways with positive and negative aspects of mental health. However, past studies tended to focus only on one covariate at a time. This study aimed to test the association between domains of perfectionism to both positive (self-esteem, wellbeing) and negative mental health indices (narcissism and psychological distress) while testing the structural validity of the Short Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale in a large non-English speaking community-based sample in Hungary. A total of 4,340 participants (49.3% male) took part in an online survey that included Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale, Narcissistic Admiration and Rivalry Questionnaire, World Health Organization Wellbeing Index-5, and parts of Brief Symptoms Inventory-18. Using structural equation modelling analyses, we confirmed the three-dimensional model of perfectionism in our community sample. In the multivariate analyses, all perfectionism factors were related to narcissism. Furthermore, only socially prescribed perfectionism was associated with low self-esteem and lower wellbeing; however, both socially prescribed and self-oriented perfectionism were associated with higher psychological distress. Our findings supported the notion that different domains of perfectionism correlate to mental health indices differently, indicating that socially prescribed perfectionism may be the harmful component of perfectionism.