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SOCIAL BEHAVIOR AND PERSONALITY, 2012, 40(7), 1121-1122 © Society for Personality Research http://dx.doi.org/10.2224/sbp.2012.40.7.1121

WHERE DOES PERFECTIONISM COME FROM? A QUALITATIVEINVESTIGATION OF PERFECTIONISTS AND NONPERFECTIONISTS
DAVID R. HIBBARD AND GAIL E. WALTON California State University Perfectionism is generally defined as the “striving for flawlessness” (Flett & Hewitt,2002, p. 5), but researchers disagree about the developmental roots of perfectionism. It is likely that a perfectionistic orientation develops over time, and family history may contribute to thedevelopment of perfectionism. Early messages from teachers, coaches, peers, and the media regarding achievement and success may also influence whether or not one becomes a perfectionist. However, it remainsunclear which specific experiences may lead one to become a perfectionist. A major purpose in this preliminary investigation was to examine the roots of achievement motivation in general and to clarifythe developmental dynamics that surround an individual who becomes a selfproclaimed perfectionist. Participants comprised 36 (16 male and 20 female) undergraduate students (65% Caucasian; Mage =24.63, SD = 7.52) from a public university in North America. Through semistructured interviews, they answered a set of questions relating to their achievement motivation (e.g., “How important isachievement to you?”). Participants were also asked if they had any perfectionistic qualities or tendencies. Interviewees who answered yes to this question were then asked a series of questions specificallyrelating to the origins of their perfectionism (e.g., “Where do you think your perfectionistic tendencies come from?”). In this study, 23 participants (64%) identified themselves as perfectionists. Interms of achievement motivation, perfectionists and nonperfectionists were similar in many areas of inquiry (e.g., believing in the need to work hard in order to succeed and feeling frustrated when...