The Domain Specificity of Perfectionism in Varsity Athletes

• Author / Creator

  McDonald, Keith A

• This study examined the domain-specific nature of perfectionism in the contexts of sport and academe among a sample of 113 female and 142 male intercollegiate varsity student-athletes. Participants completed self-report measures of domain-specific perfectionism, perceived competence (PC), and perceived importance (PI) of success. A repeated-measures MANOVA revealed that, on average, student-athletes had significantly higher levels of perfectionism in sport than in school/academe (all ps < .0001). Separate single sample t-tests for PC and PI showed the participants had, on average, significantly higher levels of PC and PI in sport than in school (ps < .001). Bivariate correlation analyses revealed that, in general, as domain-specific PC and PI increased so too did domain-specific perfectionism. Results reinforce the value of measuring perfectionism as a domain-specific (rather than global) personality disposition, and that perceived competence and perceived importance (i.e., perceived task value) may be associated with the development of domain-specific perfectionism.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Perceived importance
  • Perfectionism
  • Intercollegiate
  • Domain-specific
  • Sports
  • Athletes
  • Perceived competence
  • School

• Graduation date

  Fall 2010

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Arts

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3X12B

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.