Differences between perfectionism groups in psychosocial and emotional adjustment among people with disabilities

This study investigated differences among three perfectionism groups in various psychosocial and emotional adjustment indicators among people with disabilities. Previous research empirically supported the classification of the three perfectionism groups (maladaptive perfectionists, adaptive perfectionists, and nonperfectionists) in college student populations. It was predicted that among people with disabilities, results would parallel previous research in that the maladaptive perfectionists would perform significantly worse than the adaptive perfectionists in various assessments of adjustment, with the nonperfectionists scoring midway between these two groups.;Participants included 197 individuals with disabilities who completed the Almost Perfect Scale-Revised, the Adaptation to Disability Scale-Revised, the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Inventory, the Positive Affect and Negative Affect Schedule, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Two MANCOVAs were conducted controlling for time since onset of disability, gender, and perfectionist group x gender interaction. The first MANCOVA was performed using perfectionist grouping as the between-subjects factor and the perfectionism subscales as the dependent variables. Results indicated that perfectionist grouping had a significant main effect on the dependent variables. Univariate ANOVAs revealed statistically significant group differences on each perfectionism subscale. The second MANCOVA used perfectionist grouping as the between-subjects factor and the adjustment indicators as the dependent variables. Perfectionist grouping had a significant main effect on the dependent variables. Univariate ANOVAs indicated statistically significant group differences on the adjustment variables. Overall, the maladaptive perfectionists scored significantly higher on negative adjustment (depression and negative affect) and significantly lower on positive adjustment (disability adjustment, self-esteem, positive affect, life satisfaction) than the adaptive perfectionists. The former group also scored significantly lower on one positive adjustment measure (disability adjustment) and significantly higher on negative adjustment (depression and negative affect) than nonperfectionists. Importantly, both the maladaptive perfectionists and the nonperfectionists scored above the clinical cutoff for depression. A chi-square test was performed to determine if there were significant differences in the distribution of perfectionist groups between participants categorized as having "static" disabilities and participants categorized as having "unstable" disabilities. Distribution did not differ by disability status.