The Perils of Perfectionism in Sports and Exercise

By Gordon L. Flett, P. Hewitt. 2005

357 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Subfields: Clinical Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/b0b7cc1d4c29450417b349c786e94b5322d88de3

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In Clinical Psychology

In Cognitive Neuroscience

In Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Citations in the corpus

A Multi-Method Multi-Analytic Approach to Establishing Internal Construct Validity Evidence: The Sport Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale 2 (2009, background): “The personality trait of perfectionism has been recognized as an important achievement motivation construct to study in the competitive sport environment ( Flett & Hewitt, 2005 ), given that it has been associated with both functional/healthy and dysfunctional/unhealthy psychological, affective, and”
A person‐oriented approach to sport and school burnout in adolescent student‐athletes: The role of individual and parental expectations☆ (2017, background): “…2008, 2008; Lemyere et al., 2008), but when they are imposed by others (i.e., socially prescribed perfectionism), they are positively associated with sport burnout (Appleton, Hall, & Hill, 2009; Hill et al., 2008), although some contradictory evidence also exists (Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Hill, 2009).”
Life Satisfaction, Happiness, and the Growth Mindset of Healthy and Unhealthy Perfectionists Among Hong Kong Chinese Gifted Students (2012, background): “Despite the increasing recognition that positive and negative perfectionism can be distinguished, some researchers still have serious doubts that perfectionism can be positive, healthy, or functional (e.g., Flett & Hewitt, 2002, 2005; Greenspon, 2000).”
Perfectionism and competitive anxiety in athletes: Differentiating striving for perfection and negative reactions to imperfection (2007, background): “Other researchers, however, see perfectionism as a maladaptive trait that hinders, rather than helps athletic performance (Flett & Hewitt, 2005).”
Multidimensional Perfectionism in Sport: A Meta-Analytical Review (2018, methodology): “In response to debate regarding whether PS were likely to be adaptive for athletes (Flett & Hewitt, 2005, 2006; Hall, 2006), their review focused on the maladaptive and adaptive criterion variables related to PS and residual PS. PC were not examined.”
Perfectionistic concerns suppress associations between perfectionistic strivings and positive life outcomes (2010, background): “Despite these reports, some investigators have expressed doubts that perfectionism can be positive, adaptive, or healthy (Flett and Hewitt, 2002, Flett and Hewitt, 2005 and Greenspon, 2000).”
Evaluative Concerns and Personal Standards Perfectionism: Self-esteem as a Mediator and Moderator of Relations with Personal and Academic Needs and Estimated GPA (2008, background): “Some researchers (e.g., Flett and Hewitt 2002, 2005 ) eschew the possibility that certain perfectionism components can be adaptive and past research shows that under some special circumstances PS perfectionism is clearly not adaptive.”
Relations between multidimensional perfectionism and burnout in junior-elite male athletes. (2009, background): “Perceptions of success may not only reward motivational engagement and lead to sustained achievement striving (Enns, Cox, & Clara, 2005), but they may also help to develop resilience against potentially debilitating cognition ( Flett & Hewitt, 2005 ).”
Perfectionism and achievement goals in athletes: Relations with approach and avoidance orientations in mastery and performance goals (2008, background): “…characteristic to achieve elite performance in sports (Gould, Dieffenbach, & Moffett, 2002), others see perfectionism as a maladaptive characteristic that undermines, rather than helps athletic performance and thus represents an impediment to athletic development (Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Hall, 2006).”
Are perfectionistic strivings in sport adaptive? A systematic review of confirmatory, contradictory, and mixed evidence. (2012, background): “When combined with previous research that has consistently associated perfectionistic concerns with maladaptive characteristics in sport (Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Hall, 2006; Stoeber, 2011), these findings suggest that athletes who have elevated levels of primarily adaptive perfectionistic strivings…”
An interpretative phenomenological analysis of burnout and recovery in elite soccer coaches (2012, background): “Some researchers argue that the concept is both adaptive and maladaptive (Stoeber and Otto, 2006) or mostly maladaptive (Flett and Hewitt 2005).”
Perfectionism and burnout in junior elite soccer players: The mediating influence of unconditional self-acceptance (2008, methodology): “…contributes to a growing body of evidence which suggests that this form of perfectionism may lead to psychological impairment and considerable distress in athletes when self-validation is contingent on achievement (Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Frost & Henderson, 1991; Hall, 2006; Hall et al., 1998).”
Mindfulness for Long-Distance Runners: An Open Trial Using Mindful Sport Performance Enhancement (MSPE) (2009, unknown): “Internal judgment can lead to an increasing pressure for perfectionism, specifically dealing with high personal standards, which may get in the way of optimal sport performance (Flett & Hewitt, 2005).”
Positive Conceptions of Perfectionism: Approaches, Evidence, Challenges (2006, unknown): “Still, many researchers hold strong doubts that perfectionism can be positive, healthy, or functional, not to mention adaptive (e.g., Flett & Hewitt, 2002a, 2005; Greenspon, 2000; see also Benson, 2003).”
The dual nature of perfectionism in sports: relationships with emotion, motivation, and performance (2011, background): “Like general perfectionism, perfectionism in sports is often seen as a maladaptive, dysfunctional, and unhealthy characteristic (e.g., Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Hall, 2006).”
Perfectionism and Performance (2012, unknown): “…Hotham, 2009) have important implications for athletes, coaches, and personal trainers and advisors, as they show that perfectionism is a not necessarily a debilitating characteristic that is certain to undermine sport performance and prevent athletic development (Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Hall, 2006).”