Self-Appraisals, Perfectionism, and Academics in College Undergraduates

186 Pages·2016·1.48 MB·English

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Theses and Dissertations Graduate School
2008
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David Edward Canter
Virginia Commonwealth University
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Self-Appraisals, Perfectionism, and Academics in College Undergraduates

A dissertation proposal submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree
of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

by
David E. Canter
B.S. University of Maryland, 1986
M.S. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2003

Director: Micah L. McCreary, M.Div., Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Psychology

Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, VA
May, 2008
ii
Acknowledgement
Graduate school has been a journey of discovery. Like all journeys, I could not
have made it this far alone. Many people have accompanied me along the way, some for
a little while and some for the whole trip. I want to thank my family, especially my wife
Denise. She has been by my side for the entire process, helping me every step of the
way.
I have been aided by peers, faculty, and other researchers, all who have given
unselfishly of their time and knowledge. In particular, I would like to thank my friend
Dr. Jordan Kilgour and my advisor and dissertation committee director Dr. Micah
McCreary. Both of these men have been with me since the beginning of the journey and
both have contributed greatly to my growth as a person and as a counseling psychologist.
This dissertation could not have been done without the gracious support of my
committee members. Drs. Micah McCreary, Faye Belgrave, Suzanne Mazzeo, Jon
Steingass, and Susan Wilkes have been patient, helpful and encouraging all along the
way. Their ideas from the proposal meeting expanded my thinking on this topic and
contributed to making it a better study. I am grateful to them for their help and guidance
on this final portion of the graduate school journey.
iii
Table of Contents
Acknowledgement..............................................................................................................ii

Table of Contents...............................................................................................................iii

List of Tables.....................................................................................................................vi

List of Figures...................................................................................................................vii

List of Appendices...........................................................................................................viii

Abstract..............................................................................................................................ix

Chapter 1.............................................................................................................................1
Introduction.............................................................................................................1

Chapter 2.............................................................................................................................5
Review of the Literature.........................................................................................5
Introduction to Issues in Perfectionism Research.............................................5
Perfectionism: An Evolving Construct.............................................................8
Burns Perfectionism Scale..............................................................................10
Measures Developed to Study Eating Disorders............................................10
Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale..................................................11
Hewitt and Flett Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale................................12
Comparing the MPS-F and MPS-HF..............................................................14
Almost Perfect Scale.......................................................................................15
Criticisms of Current Conceptualizations of Perfectionism...........................17
A New, Two-Component Model of Perfectionism.........................................19
Self-Appraisals................................................................................................24
Self-Appraisals and Perfectionism..................................................................32
Self-Esteem and Perfectionism.......................................................................45
Shame, Guilt, and Perfectionism....................................................................46
Perfectionism and Academics in College Undergraduates.............................50
Procrastination and Perfectionism..................................................................52

Chapter 3...........................................................................................................................56
Statement of the Problem......................................................................................56
Present Study..................................................................................................59
Hypothesis 1....................................................................................................60
Hypothesis 2....................................................................................................61
Hypothesis 3....................................................................................................62
Hypothesis 4....................................................................................................62
iv
Hypothesis 5....................................................................................................63
Hypothesis 6....................................................................................................63
Hypothesis 7....................................................................................................64

Chapter 4...........................................................................................................................65
Method..................................................................................................................65
Participants......................................................................................................65
Procedures.......................................................................................................70
Measures.........................................................................................................71
Demographics and Single-Item Questions......................................................71
Predictor Variables: The Visible Self.............................................................71
Predictor Variables: Global Self-Evaluations.................................................72
Predictor Variables: Academic Domain-Specific Evaluative Factors............73
Criterion Variables: Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism......................75
Criterion Variable: Procrastination.................................................................76

Chapter 5...........................................................................................................................77
Results...................................................................................................................77
Data Inspection and Preliminary Analyses.....................................................77
Organization and Order of Results.................................................................81
Hypothesis 1: Frequency and Group-Level Analyses....................................81
Pre-Regression Correlation Analysis..............................................................88
Regression Analysis Predicting Adaptive Perfectionism (Hypotheses 1, 2, 4,
and 6)..............................................................................................................94
Regression Analysis Predicting Maladaptive Perfectionism (Hypotheses 1, 2,
3, 4, 5, and 6)................................................................................................100
Hypothesis 6: Frequency Analysis................................................................105
Hypothesis 7..................................................................................................107

Chapter 6.........................................................................................................................111
Discussion...........................................................................................................111
Comparison of Sample Characteristics With Previous Research.................111
Support for Hypotheses.................................................................................115
Hypothesis 1: Race and Gender....................................................................116
Hypotheses 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6: Predicting Adaptive and Maladaptive
Perfectionism................................................................................................118
Hypothesis 7: Predicting Academic Trait Procrastination............................119
Implications of Findings for Theory and Research.......................................120
Implications for Student Affairs Professionals, Faculty, and Counselors....132
Limitations of the Present Study...................................................................138
Directions and Suggestions for Future Research..........................................141

References.......................................................................................................................144
v

Appendix A Study Measures..........................................................................................160

Appendix B Study Debrief Statement.............................................................................173

Vita .............................................................................................................................175
vi
List of Tables
Table 1 Differences Between Maladaptive and Adaptive Perfectionism............................9
Table 2 Names of Major Perfectionism Scales.................................................................33
Table 3 Descriptive Statistics for Sample.........................................................................78
Table 4 Numbers and Proportions of Perfectionists by Race and Gender.......................83
Table 5 Variables With Significant Differences Across Race...........................................85
Table 6 Variable Differences Across Gender...................................................................87
Table 7 Correlations for Study Variables.........................................................................90
Table 8 Multiple Regression Results for Predicting Adaptive Perfectionism (APS-R High
Standards).................................................................................................................95
Table 9 Multiple Regression Results for Predicting Maladaptive Perfectionism (APS-R
Discrepancy)...........................................................................................................101
Table 10 Numbers and Proportions of Perfectionists by GPA.......................................106
Table 11 Multiple Regression Results for Predicting Procrastination (API).................108
vii
List of Figures
Figure 1. The two-component model of perfectionism...................................................20
viii
List of Appendices
Appendix A Study Measures..........................................................................................160
Appendix B Study Debrief Statement.............................................................................173
ix
Abstract
SELF-APPRAISALS, PERFECTIONISM, AND ACADEMICS IN COLLEGE
UNDERGRADUATES

By David E. Canter, Ph.D. Candidate

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2008

Major Director: Micah L. McCreary, M.Div., Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Psychology

The influences on perfectionism and procrastination of race, gender, cognitive-affective
and academic self-appraisals, and academic performance expectations were studied. The
sample consisted of 155 Introductory Psychology students (57 African Americans, 41
Asian Americans, and 57 European Americans; 51.6% women) with a mean age of 19.4
years (SD = 3.6). Data were collected during the final week of the Fall 2007 semester.
Consistent with previous research indicating that men are more likely to procrastinate
than women, men were over-represented in this sample. Self-esteem, measured with the
Rosenberg (1965) Self-Esteem Scale, was conceptualized as having two components:
self-liking and self-competence (Tafarodi & Milne, 2002). Guilt- and shame-proneness
were measured with the Test of Self-Conscious Affect, Version 3, Short-form (TOSCA-
3S; Tangney & Dearing, 2002). Academic self-confidence was measured with the