Strategies for Understanding and Managing Perfectionism, the Double-Edged Sword
What is Perfectionism?
Perfectionism is a double-edged sword, particularly for athletes. A construct that has widely been studied in the area of sport psychology, perfectionism is multidimensional and depending on an individual’s personality, can lead to highly positive or extremely negative consequences. Perfectionism is a personality style characterized by setting extremely high standards for performance, striving for flawlessness, a tendency to be overly critical in evaluations of one's performance, concern over making mistakes, and being highly organized (Flett & Hewitt, 2005).
Is Perfectionism Helpful or Harmful?
As one can see, these behaviors can be both unhelpful (maladaptive) or helpful (adaptive). Maladaptive perfectionism, a focus on high standards accompanied by concern over making mistakes and an evaluation of others, is most associated with excessive exercise, poor performance, and athlete burnout (Flett & Hewitt, 2005; Stober et al., 2009; Appleton et al., 2009). More so, when athletes have poor coping skills to navigate maladaptive perfectionism they are at a greater risk for receiving a mental health diagnosis. Contrary to maladaptive perfectionism, adaptive perfectionism, focusing on high standards but not excessively worrying about making mistakes or about how others evaluate one’s performance, is connected with better learning and performance and more adaptive goal patterns (Stoeber et al., 2009; Stoll et al., 2008).
Common Perfectionistic Characteristics in Athletes
In sports, athletes tend to exhibit four common perfectionistic characteristics that impact performance (Watson et al., 2022):
Pre-competition emotions - athletes experiencing perfectionism may feel heightened emotions such as anxiety and discouragement before competition due to a fear of failure.
Cognitive appraisals - athletes who exhibit perfectionistic tendencies often appraise situations as a threat (versus a challenge).
Performance satisfaction - perfectionism causes athletes to set extraordinarily high standards and goals for their performance, which may lead them to feel dissatisfied with their performance.
Perfectionistic cognitions - thoughts and images about the need to be flawless often sounding like, “Why aren’t I perfect?” and “I can’t make any mistakes.” Thoughts like these create unreachable goals for athletes.
What steps can athletes take to manage perfectionism?
As with any sport-specific skill, learning to manage perfectionism takes time and effort. Below are a few steps that you can take to better support yourself during times of heightened maladaptive perfectionism:
Trust your training - use your training to practice performing as you would in a competition environment. Doing so will increase your confidence on competition day.
Set attainable goals - ensure that your goals are attainable and realistic. This will increase your performance satisfaction. Remember, goals are meant to be changed! If you need to adjust your goal, you’re not failing. You’re being mindful of your performance needs!
Reframe threat states into challenge states - permit yourself to encounter challenges. The more opportunities you have to encounter challenges the better resilience you will develop to handle future challenges. Challenges will feel less like a threat and more like an opportunity.
Objectively reflect upon your performance - as mentioned previously, perfectionists often view their performances critically and with a harsh perspective. Doing so will decrease your confidence. Instead of subjectively reviewing your performance, look at your performance in an objective way. List all the things you did well. Oftentimes, this is helpful to do with a coach or mental performance consultant who can catch you if you start becoming self-critical.
Takeaway
Depending on an athlete’s intention, perfectionism can be maladaptive (unhelpful) or adaptive (helpful) to performance. Becoming aware of the intention behind perfectionistic behaviors can greatly enable someone to facilitate a fulfilling and successful performance experience. What steps can you take to increase adaptive perfectionism in your sports performances?
Should you find that your perfectionism is inhibiting you from peak performance, please click here to schedule a free consultation with one of our expert consultants.
Blog written by: Dr.Kelsey Varzeas
References
Appleton, P.R., Hall, H.K., Hill, A.P. (2009). Relations between multidimensional perfectionism and burnout in junior-elite athletes. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 10, 457-465.
Flett, G.L., & Hewitt, P.L. (2005). The perils of perfectionism in sport and exercise. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14, 14-18.
Stoeber, J., Uphill, M.A., Hotham, S. (2009). Predicting race performance in triathlon: The role of perfectionism, achievement goals, and personal goal setting. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 31, 211-245.
Stoll, O., Lau, A., & Steober, J. (2008). Perfectionism and performance in a new basketball training task: Does striving for perfection enhance or undermine performance? Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 9, 620-629.
Watson, D.R., Hill, A.P., & Madigan, D.J. (2022). Psychological skills training and perfectionism: A single-subject multiple baseline study. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 35 (5), 854-873.