The Role of Social Disconnection in the Relationship between Perfectionism and Psychological Distress
Abstract
This dissertation investigated the interpersonal mechanisms through which various aspects of perfectionism confer risk for psychological outcomes. Three studies were conducted based on the Perfectionism Social Disconnection Model (Hewitt, Flett, & Mikail, 2017), which proposes that individuals with higher levels of perfectionism may experience significant social disconnection, which then lead to a variety of maladaptive outcomes. Study 1 examined the longitudinal impacts of trait perfectionism and sense of relatedness on the variance in change in psychological outcomes. Findings showed that negative perceptions of relatedness partially mediated the link between socially prescribed perfectionism and psychological distress three months later; however, this relationship was no longer significant when controlled for baseline symptoms. Studies 2 and 3 examined the mediating role of social disconnection in the relationship between perfectionism and psychological outcomes in a sample of general undergraduate students, as well as students in medical and law programs. Findings showed that feelings of loneliness mediated the relationship between nondisclosure of imperfection and outcomes of depression and psychological distress in undergraduate, law, and medical students. Results also showed that loneliness mediated the links between socially prescribed perfectionism and psychological distress in undergraduate and law students, but not in medical students. Tests of group differences showed that medical students reported lower levels of perfectionism compared to both law and undergraduate students. Understanding the potential impacts of perfectionism and the interpersonal mechanisms involved that make individuals vulnerable to maladaptive outcomes will assist academic programs in developing effective strategies to reduce sources of psychological distress, build students’ resilience, and improve the ways in which students can feel socially supported and connected with others.