Perfecting, Belonging, and Repairing: A Dynamic-Relational Approach to Perfectionism
This article is based on my address given at the Canadian Psychological Association annual convention in Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 31, 2019. The address was given on the occasion of my receiving the Donald O. Hebb Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology as a Science. In this paper, I w...
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| Published in: | Canadian psychology = Psychologie canadienne 2020-05, Vol.61 (2), p.101-110 |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | eng |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | This article is based on my address given at the Canadian Psychological Association annual convention in Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 31, 2019. The address was given on the occasion of my receiving the Donald O. Hebb Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology as a Science. In this paper, I will present some of the ideas and work that my colleagues, especially Dr. Gordon Flett and Dr. Samuel Mikail, and I have undertaken in an attempt to gain an understanding of perfectionism, a core vulnerability factor that underscores myriad psychological, physical, relational, and achievement problems. The research and clinical work arising from the work is heavily influenced by my psychodynamic-interpersonal perspective and, generally, includes several major streams of inquiry. These include addressing what perfectionism is; what kinds of distress, dysfunction, and disorders perfectionism is associated with; how perfectionism develops and how it works in producing difficulties; and finally, the development, refinement, and evaluation of a dynamic-relational psychotherapeutic approach for treating perfectionistic behaviour. I discuss briefly what we learned in this process both in terms of perfectionism and in terms of attempting to understand a complex and multifarious personality vulnerability factor. Finally, I conclude with briefly acknowledging and describing some of the gifted Canadian researchers across the country who have also been captivated with understanding perfectionism and who have added significantly to our understanding of the construct.
Public Significance Statement
This paper provides a review of the perfectionism research, models, and treatment approaches developed by Drs. Paul L. Hewitt, Gordon L. Flett, and Sam Mikail and colleagues. It outlines four streams of research and conceptual work done on perfectionism, a core vulnerability factor in psychological and physical health outcomes as well as relationship, achievement, and treatment outcome problems.
Cet article vise à étoffer l'allocution que j'ai prononcée au congrès annuel de la Société canadienne de psychologie, à Halifax, en Nouvelle-Écosse, le 31 mai 2019, lorsqu'on m'a décerné le Prix Donald O. Hebb pour contributions remarquables à la psychologie en tant que science. J'y présente quelques idées de mes collègues, en particulier Gordon Flett et Samuel Mikail, et de moi-même ainsi que les travaux que nous avons entrepris afin de mieux comprendre le perfectionnisme, un important fact |
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| ISSN: | 0708-5591 1878-7304 |