Het verband tussen perfectionisme en depressieve klachten bij adolescenten en de invloed van angst

Abstract

Aim Nowadays, adolescents grow up in a society with a lot of pressure to perform. As a result, they are likely to develop perfectionism. Perfectionism is a personality trait that includes setting high standards for one’s own performances and dealing with high standards imposed by others. A negative consequence of perfectionism might be that it increases the risk of developing psychopathology in adolescents. Therefore, the present study examines whether there is an association between perfectionism and depression in adolescents and whether anxiety is a moderator in this relationship. Method The sample included 281 Dutch adolescents from several ethnic backgrounds (54.9% male, 45.1% female) with an age ranging from 12 to 15 years (M = 13.52; SD = .61). Participants completed the Dutch versions of the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, Children’s Depression Inventory 2 and Stait-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Results Findings of this cross-sectional study show that there is a positive association between perfectionism and depressive symptoms in adolescents, as well as between socially prescribed perfectionism and depressive symptoms. A negative association is found between self-oriented perfectionism and depressive symptoms. Anxiety is found to be a significant positive moderator in all the aforementioned associations. Conclusion Results imply that perfectionism could be a predictor of depressive symptoms, although extended research is needed to determine if there are more mediators or moderators in this association. Findings also illustrate the importance of perfectionism and anxiety in the treatment of depression.