Do you want me to be perfect? Two longitudinal studies on socially prescribed perfectionism, stress and burnout in the workplace

an article by Julian H. Childs and Joachim Stoeber ( University of Kent, Canterbury, UK) published in Work & Stress: An International Journal of Work, Health & Organisations Volume 26 Issue 4 (November 2012)

Abstract

Stress and burnout in the workplace have a negative impact not only on individuals but also on organisations, clients and customers and are estimated to be of high cost to a country’s economy. To help identify employees at high risk, it is important to know what individual differences contribute to stress and burnout.

Two longitudinal studies were conducted to examine whether individual differences in socially prescribed perfectionism (individuals’ perceptions that others have perfectionistic expectations of them) contribute to employees’ role stress and predict increases in burnout symptoms (exhaustion, cynicism and inefficacy).

Study 1 investigated 69 healthcare service provision employees in the UK over a six-month interval, and Study 2 investigated 195 school teachers in the UK over a three-month interval.

In both studies, socially prescribed perfectionism predicted increases in role stress and inefficacy over time.

Moreover, in Study 2, socially prescribed perfectionism also predicted increases in exhaustion and cynicism over time.

The findings indicate that individual differences in socially prescribed perfectionism may be a contributing factor to stress and burnout in the workplace.

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