Dimensions of Perfectionism Mediate the Relationship Between Parenting Styles and Coping

Perfectionism, defined as rigid adherence to unrealistically high personal standards, hypersensitivity to mistakes, and overgeneralization of failures, has been widely studied (Flett & Hewitt, 2002; Frost, Heimberg, Holt, Mattia, & Neubauer, 1993; Stoeber & Otto, 2006). The development of high personal standards and fear of failure likely originated from interactions with parents, and empirical studies have documented relationships between parenting practices and perfectionism (Flett, Hewitt, & Singer, 1995; Rice, Ashby, & Preusser, 1996; Speirs Neumeister, 2004; Speirs Neumeister & Finch, 2006; Speirs Neumeister, Williams, & Cross, 2009). Personal standards and fear of failure also affect how individuals cope with stress (Dixon, Lapsley, & Hanchon, 2004; Flett, Druckman, Hewitt, & Wekerle, 2012; Hill, Hall, & Appleton, 2010; Stoeber & Rennert, 2008). Individuals with high personal standards reported the use of active coping (i.e., trying to deal with the stressor or reduce its impact), whereas individuals with concerns over their mistakes reported the use of avoidant coping (i.e., avoiding the stressor or denying its impact; Flett et al., 2012; Hill et al., 2010; Stoeber & Rennert, 2008). In addition, individuals' use of different coping strategies has been linked to parenting practices (Swanson, Valiente, Lemery-Chalfant, & O'Brien, 2011). Given that previous literature has demonstrated direct links among parenting styles, perfectionism, and coping, perfectionism might serve as a mediator between parenting and coping. In other words, parenting might affect the use of different coping strategies through different dimensions of perfectionism. To date, relationships between parenting and perfectionism, perfectionism and coping, and parenting and coping have been examined separately. The purpose of the present study is to examine the relationships among parenting, perfectionism, and coping and to determine if perfectionism serves as a mediator between parenting and coping. Perfectionism was historically linked with psychopathology (Frost et al., 1993; Stoeber & Otto, 2006). Although initially conceptualized as a unidimensional construct, researchers now generally agree that perfectionism should be viewed as a multidimensional construct. The multidimensional nature of perfectionism was highlighted in the early 1990s when two groups of researchers (Frost, Marten, Lahart, & Rosenblate, 1990; Hewitt & Flett, 1991) developed separate measures of perfectionism. Frost et al. (1993) reported substantial overlap between the Frost et al. (1990) and the Hewitt and Flett (1991) measures. When both measures were combined with factor analysis, two distinct types of perfectionism were revealed: evaluative concerns (Concern Over Mistakes, Parental Criticism, Parental Expectations, Doubts About Actions, and Socially Prescribed Perfectionism subscales) and perfectionistic strivings (Personal Standards, Organization, Self-Oriented Perfectionism, and Other-Oriented Perfectionism subscales; Frost et al., 1990; Stoeber & Otto, 2006). In the past 2 decades, researchers have used a variety of terms to describe these different types of perfectionism, such as positive and negative perfectionism, healthy and non-healthy perfectionism, and adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism (Stoeber & Otto, 2006). For clarity and consistency with the majority of research on perfectionism, parenting, and coping, we used the terms adaptive perfectionism and maladaptive perfectionism to review the literature. Parenting and Perfectionism In the definition of perfectionism, parenting practices have figured prominently in several of the items in the Frost et al. (1990) and Hewitt and Flett (1991) measures of perfectionism. Parental Criticism and Parental Expectations were two subscales included in Frost et al.'s measure; however, the utility of these subscales to define perfectionism has been questioned (Stoeber & Otto, 2006). …