Perfectionism in Chinese university students from Taiwan: A study of psychological well-being and achievement motivation

The present study compared types of perfectionists on psychological well-being and achievement motivation among 273 Taiwanese college students. The factor structure and psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Almost Perfect Scale-Revised (APS-R; Slaney, R. B., Mobley, M., Trippi, J., Ashby, J. S., & Johnson, D. (1996). Almost Perfect Scale-Revised, Unpublished scale, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park.) were assessed. A cluster analysis located four groups; in addition to the adaptive perfectionists, maladaptive perfectionists, and nonperfectionists that were identified in past US studies, a group with low-High Standards/higher-Discrepancy scores emerged. This fourth group had the most participants but their scores on the High Standards scale suggested that they did not set high standards for themselves. Paradoxically, however, their scores on the Discrepancy scale were elevated. Analyses of variance were conducted to examine group differences on measures of achievement motivation, anxiety, depression, and self-esteem. Cultural explanations regarding a collectivistic background and parenting styles are suggested in explaining the elevated Discrepancy scores for the fourth group. Clinical implications, limitations, and future directions for research are discussed.