Received 09/12/11 Revised Accepted 11/22/11

Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism as Mediators of Adult Attachment Styles and Depression, Hopelessness, and Life Satisfaction
Philip B. Gnilka, Jeffrey S. Ashby, and Christina M. Noble
This study examined the relationships between adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism, anxious and avoidant adult attachment styles, depression, hopelessness, and life satisfaction among a sample of 180 undergraduate students. Maladaptive perfectionism mediated the relationship between both forms of adult attachment and depression, hopelessness, and life satisfaction. Adaptive perfectionism mediated the relationship between avoidant adult attachment and hopelessness and life satisfaction. Implications for counselors and future research directions are discussed. Keywords: perfectionism, attachment, depression, hopelessness, life satisfaction

Over the past decade, counselors have become keenly interested in how individuals develop different adult attachment styles and perfectionism dimensions over the life span (e.g., Brennan, Clark, & Shaver, 1998; Wei, Heppner, Russell, & Young, 2006). Stoeber and Otto (2006) and another author (e.g., Hamachek, 1978) have argued that two formations of perfectionism can be identified: maladaptive perfectionism and adaptive perfectionism. Maladaptive perfectionism is associated with extreme self-criticalness and a persistent sense of failure to live up to personal high standards of performance. Conversely, adaptive perfectionism is associated with a sense of individual striving toward personal high standards without a crippling self-critical voice when these elevated standards are not met. A considerable body of research has developed supporting the multidimensional nature of perfectionism. For instance, both the standards and self-criticism dimensions of perfectionism can be measured by the Standards and Discrepancy subscales of the Almost Perfection ScaleRevised (APS-R; Slaney, Rice, Mobley, Trippi, & Ashby, 2001). When partialling out the overlap between the two dimensions, as noted in recent studies (e.g., Ashby, Dickinson, Gnilka, & Noble, 2011; Ashby, Noble, & Gnilka, 2012; Rice, Leever, Christopher, & Porter, 2006; Rice, Tucker, & Desmond, 2008), the high standards dimension is positively associated with multiple positive outcomes, such as lower levels of depressive symptoms, a decreased sense of hopelessness, increased levels of hope, and a higher sense of life satisfaction. On the other hand, the discrepancy dimension is associated with multiple negative outcomes, such as increased levels of depressive symptoms, increased feelings of hopelessness, lower levels of self-esteem, and higher usage of unhelpful coping strategies (Dunkley, Sanislow, Grilo, & McGlashan, 2006; Dunkley, Zuroff, & Blankstein, 2003; Rice, Ashby, & Slaney, 1998; Rice et al., 2006). While researchers

have investigated how various perfectionism dimensions are related to various psychological outcomes, investigators are starting to explore the precursors to the development of perfectionism. One promising construct that has gained increased attention is adult attachment. Similar to perfectionism, considerable research notes that adult attachment can be viewed in two dimensions: attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance (Brennan et al., 1998). Adults with high levels of adult attachment anxiety report feelings of rejection and abandonment and can easily feel overwhelmed by negative emotions; in addition, adults with high levels of adult attachment avoidance may feel uneasy with being close to others and have a high need for independence and self-reliance. Adults who report low levels of both anxiety and avoidance are considered to have the ability for more stable and secure attachments with others (Besser & Priel, 2003; Brenan et al., 1998; Lopez & Brennan, 2000). Both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance can be measured by the Anxiety and Avoidance subscales of the Experiences in Close Relationship Questionnaire-Revised (ECR-R; Fraley, Waller, & Brennan, 2000). Higher levels of either or both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance are associated with various psychological outcomes, including low self-confidence (Lopez & Gormley, 2002), ineffective coping strategies (Lopez & Gormley, 2002), low self-esteem (Rice & Lopez, 2004), and high levels of depression (Wei, Mallinckrodt, Russell, & Abraham, 2004; Wei et al., 2006). Over the past decade, only a few studies have used more complex models to explain the relationships between attachment, perfectionism, and psychological outcome. In one of the first studies investigating the relationship between attachment and perfectionism, Rice and Mirzadeh (2000) concluded that maladaptive perfectionism and insecure parental attachment were related, whereas adaptive perfection-

Philip B. Gnilka, Department of Counseling and Human Development Services, Kent State University; Jeffrey S. Ashby and Christina M. Noble, Department of Counseling and Psychological Services, Georgia State University. Philip B. Gnilka is now at Department of Counseling and Special Education, DePaul University. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Philip B. Gnilka, Department of Counseling and Special Education, DePaul University, 2320 North Kenmore Avenue, Chicago, IL 60614 (e-mail: pgnilka@depaul.edu). 2013 by the American Counseling Association. All rights reserved.

78

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Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism and Adult Attachment Styles ism and secure parental attachment were related. Rice and Lopez (2004) extended Rice and Mirzadehs study by measuring adult attachment rather than parental attachment and found that adult attachment security moderated the negative relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and self-esteem. While Rice and Lopez investigated a moderation model, Wei et al. (2004) found that maladaptive perfectionism fully mediated the relationship between adult attachment avoidance and depression and partially mediated the relationship between adult attachment anxiety and depression. Wei et al. (2006) extended Wei et al.s study (2004) by using a longitudinal design and investigating if both maladaptive perfectionism and ineffective coping mediated the relationship between attachment and depression. In this particular study, higher levels of attachment anxiety and avoidance increased the likelihood of maladaptive perfectionism, which influenced the use of more ineffective coping styles that, in turn, lead to increased levels of depression. In summary, maladaptive perfectionism has been positively related to less secure attachment styles and has mediated that relationship with various psychological outcomes, such as depression, self-esteem, and self-confidence. While the relationship between attachment, maladaptive perfectionism, and psychological outcomes has been investigated, the mediating role of adaptive perfectionism between attachment style and psychological functioning has been neglected to date. Given adaptive perfectionisms positive relationship with more secure attachment styles (Rice & Mirzadeh, 2000), negative relationships with depression (Ashby et al., 2011), more positive family dynamics (DiPrima, Ashby, Gnilka, & Noble, 2011), and increased life satisfaction (Ashby et al., 2012), it seems possible that adaptive perfectionism may act as a positive psychological buffer. One possibility is that adaptive perfectionism may mediate the relationship between attachment style and various psychological outcomes. Thus, one of the purposes of this study was to investigate if adaptive perfectionism acted as a mediator between attachment style and various psychological outcomes using the APS-R, which was specifically designed to measure both adaptive and maladaptive forms of perfectionism. While investigators have investigated depression and self-esteem, no researchers have investigated if adaptive perfectionism and maladaptive perfectionism mediate the relationships between attachment and other psychological outcomes, as suggested by Wei et al. (2006). Thus, another purpose of this study was to investigate if both maladaptive perfectionism and adaptive perfectionism are mediators of attachment style and two other psychological outcomes: hopelessness and life satisfaction. range of studies for course credit by accessing an online portal that tracked participation. Once participants had chosen to take part in this study, they clicked a hyperlink that connected them to an informed consent for the study. After agreeing to the study, they were asked to fill out the survey instruments online. Participants completed the following instruments in order: APS-R (Slaney, et al., 2001), the ECR-R Fraley et al., 2000), the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS; Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985), the Kandel Depression Scale (KDS; Kandel & Davies, 1982), and the Becks Hopelessness Scale (BHS; Beck & Steer, 1988). University institutional review board approval was obtained for this study. A total of 190 participants filled out surveys; however, 10 were incomplete and excluded from the analysis. Of the 180 remaining, 40 identified as male (22.2%), 134 as female (74.4%), and 6 declined to answer (3.3%). Their ages ranged from 18 to 48 with a mean age of 21.2. Of the participants, 70.6% self-identified as Caucasian (n = 127), 10.0% as Native American (n = 18), 3.3% as multiracial (n = 6), 1.7% as Asian American (n = 3), 1.7% as African American (n = 3), and 12.8% declined to answer (n = 23). Percentages in this section do not total 100 because of rounding.) Instruments APS-R (Slaney et al., 2001). The APS-R is a 23-item inventory designed to measure the multidimensional construct of perfectionism through three subscales: Standards, Order, and Discrepancy. Standards is designed to measure personal standards, Order measures a participants organization and need for order, and Discrepancy is designed to measure distress caused by the discrepancy between performance and standards. Participants respond to the items of these scales using a 7-point Likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted by Slaney, Rice, and Ashby (2002) that supported the configuration and independence of the subscales. In separate analyses, factor ratings for the items ranged from 0.49 to 0.86. Slaney et al. (2002) also provided support for the convergent and discriminant validity of the subscales and Cronbach alpha coefficients of 0.85 (Standards), 0.92 (Discrepancy), and 0.68 (Order). Rice and Ashby (2007) concluded that the Order subscale did not assist in the identification of perfectionism. Following their recommendation and the example of previous studies (e.g., Ashby et al., 2011), APS-R Order subscale scores were not included in the analyses in this study. Cronbach alpha coefficients for the subscales in this study were .85 for the Standards scores and .92 for the Discrepancy scores. ECR-R (Fraley et al., 2000). The ECR-R contains two subscales: Avoidance (18 items) and Anxiety (18 items), which measure levels of adult attachment avoidance and adult attachment anxiety on a 7-point Likert type scale. Higher scores on either subscale indicate greater insecure attachment orientations on that dimension, whereas lower scores on both subscales indicate more secure attachment 79

Method
Participants and Procedure Participants were recruited from introductory undergraduate psychology research pools and were able to choose from a

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Gnilka, Ashby, & Noble orientations. Sample items inquire about both domains, such as My desire to be very close sometimes scares people away (Anxiety) and I am nervous when partners get too close to me (Avoidance). Sibley and Liu (2004) investigated the construct validity and temporal stability. Through a series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, they found the ECR-R produced the two factors (Anxiety and Avoidance). They also found short-term temporal stability to be good over a 6-week period (86% of the shared variance over time). Cronbach alpha coefficients of .92 for Avoidance and .91 for Anxiety were found for this study. SWLS (Diener et al., 1985). The SWLS is a 5-item measure of global or overall life satisfaction using a 7-point Likerttype scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The total score ranges between 5 and 35, with higher scores reflecting greater overall life satisfaction. The SWLS has been shown to have good convergent validity with other scales that measure subjective well-being (Pavot & Diener, 1993). Eight week testretest reliability for the scale was .82, with a Cronbach alpha coefficient of .87 (Diener et al., 1985). Vassar (2008) conducted a reliability generalization meta-analysis to analyze the internal consistency of SWLS scores across 62 articles and obtained a mean Cronbach alpha coefficient of .78. In the present sample, the Cronbach alpha coefficient was .89. KDS (Kandel & Davies, 1982). The KDS is a widely used 7-item scale designed to measure symptoms of depression in adolescents and young adults. Possible responses range from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much) for all items, with total scores ranging from 5 to 35. Questions asked, for example, if respondents experienced Feeling hopeless about the future. Kandel and Davies (1982) reported evidence for the reliability of the scale, with a Cronbach alpha coefficient of .79 and a testretest reliability coefficient of .76 after 5 to 6 months. The authors also demonstrated construct validity and concurrent validity with strong correlations with other measures of depression. The KDS has been used previously with college students (e.g., Rice, Cunningham, & Young, 1997) and demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (.75) for the college student sample. The Cronbach alpha coefficient was .78 for this sample. BHS (Beck & Steer, 1988). The BHS is a 20-item true/false scale that measures the severity of hopelessness. A score of 9 or higher indicated moderate amounts of hopelessness and depression (Beck & Steer, 1988). Sufficient reliability has been demonstrated in previous studies, with KuderRichardson 20 reliability coefficients of approximately .80 and 3-week testretest stability of .85 (Holden & Fekken, 1988). The KuderRichardson 20 reliability coefficient was .83 for this sample. Construct validity of the scales has been demonstrated in nonclinical populations by multiple researchers (Marai, 2004; Young, Halper, Clark, & Scheftner, 1992). Concurrent validity has been demonstrated with various measures of depression (Beck & Steer, 1988; Steed, 2001) and has been 80 shown to have discriminant validity in differentiating suicidal ideation (Beck, Steer, Beck, & Newman, 1993). Statistical Method To test the hypothesis that maladaptive and adaptive perfectionism mediate the relationship between attachment style and various psychological outcomes, the Preacher and Hayes (2008) multiple mediation bootstrapping approach was used. This bootstrapping approach is an extension of the Sobel Test (Baron & Kenny, 1986; Sobel, 1982), which compares the indirect effect of an independent variable on a dependent variable to the null hypothesis that it equals zero. Bootstrapping is a nonparametric approach that takes a large number of samples of the original sample size from the data. This approach examines both the combined indirect effect of all mediators and the effect of each individual mediator while controlling for the others. In contrast to more common tests of mediation (e.g., Baron & Kenny, 1986; Sobel, 1982), this analysis does not need the data to be normally distributed (see Preacher & Hayes, 2004, for a discussion). In this study, the indirect effect (ab) is the product of the effect of the independent variable (anxious or avoidant attachment style) on the mediators (maladaptive perfectionism and adaptive perfectionism) and the effect of the mediators on the dependent variable (satisfaction with life, depression, or hopelessness). Using the bootstrapping technique, 5,000 random samples of the original sample were taken from the data, replacing each value as it was sampled; the indirect effect (ab path) was computed in each sample. The point estimate of the indirect effect is the mean ab path value computed over all of the 5,000 samples. Next, 95% confidence intervals are calculated. The indirect effect is significant when zero is not located in these bias-corrected and accelerated (BCa) confidence intervals. Effect sizes were presented as R2 and designated as small (.02), medium (.15), or large (.35), respectively (Cohen, 1988, 1992).

Results
Correlations between APS-R subscales, ECR-R subscales, SWLS, KDS, and BHS, along with Cronbach alpha coefficients for all scales/subscales appear in Table 1. Results of the bootstrapping analyses showed that maladaptive perfectionism mediated the relationship between both attachment styles (avoidant and anxious) and all three outcomes (depression, hopelessness, and life satisfaction), as noted by zero not being in any of the constructed confidence intervals. All results were medium or large effect sizes. Adaptive perfectionism successfully mediated the relationship between avoidant attachment style and both hopelessness and life satisfaction, as noted by zero not being in the constructed confidence intervals; both were between a medium and large effect size. Results of the bootstrapping analyses with avoidant attachment style as the independent variable are shown in Table 2 and Figure 1,

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Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism and Adult Attachment Styles Table 1 Correlations Among Variables
Scale/Subscale M SD a 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 41.75 5.88 .85 1. APS-R Standards 41.91 14.02 .92 .10 2. APS-R Discrepancy 2.41 0.95 .92 .18* .22* 3. ECR-R Adult Attachment Avoidance 3.60 1.06 .91 .11 .33* .28* 4. ECR-R Adult Attachment Anxiety 17.11 5.17 .78 .01 .29* .17* .37* 5. KDS 3.73 3.49 .83 .21* .24* .29* .08 .29* 6. BHS 23.11 6.65 .89 .22* .29* .32* .27* .39* .47* 7. SWLS Note. N = 180. APS-R = Almost Perfect ScaleRevised; ECR-R = Experiences in Close RelationshipsRevised Questionnaire; KDS = Kandel Depression Scale; BHS = Beck Hopelessness Scale; SWLS = Satisfaction With Life Scale. *p < .05.

and results with anxious attachment style as the independent variable are shown in Table 3 and Figure 2.

Discussion
In this study, we investigated the relationships between adult attachment dimensions, perfectionism, depression, hopelessness, and life satisfaction as well as if maladaptive and adaptive perfectionism mediated these relationships. Similar

to the results of other studies (e.g., Ashby et al., 2011; Rice et al., 2008), adaptive perfectionism was positively associated with life satisfaction and negatively associated with depression, hopelessness, and both adult attachment styles (avoidant and anxious). This is consistent with Hamacheks (1978) portrayal of adaptive perfectionism where one gains a sense of satisfaction and pleasure from life and experiences feelings of excitement about future tasks and goals. Conversely, maladaptive perfectionism was negatively associated with

Table 2 Mediation Analysis Results for Avoidant Adult Attachment

Dependent Variable Depression (DEP) R 2 = .10 F(3, 176) = 6.86** C Path/Effect B SE 0.44 0.50 1.16 0.65 0.03 0.45 0.08 0.16 0.08 0.31 0.50 1.16 0.04 0.02 0.31 0.08 0.09 0.23 0.55 0.50 1.16 0.08 0.03 0.55 0.15 0.19 0.24 b .18* .18* .22** .05 .28*** .11* .01 .06* .07* .29*** .18* .22** .20** .21** .20** .04 .06* .10** .32*** .18* .22** .21*** .26*** .22** .04 .06* .10** 95% CI 1.07 a1 (AVOID ADAPTIVE) 1.23 a2 (AVOID MALADAPTIVE) 3.54 b1 (ADAPTIVE DEP) 0.43 b2 (MALADAPTIVE DEP) 0.11 c (AVOID DEP) 0.64 a1 b1 0.05 a2 b2 0.37 Total 0.05 C 1.21 a1 (AVOID ADAPTIVE) 1.23 a2 (AVOID MALADAPTIVE) 3.54 b1 (ADAPTIVE HOPELESS) 0.12 b2 (MALADAPTIVE HOPELESS) 0.06 c (AVOID HOPELESS) 0.86 a1 b1 0.15 a2 b2 0.20 Total 0.35 C 2.45 a1 (AVOID ADAPTIVE) 1.23 a2 (AVOID MALADAPTIVE) 3.54 b1 (ADAPTIVE SWLS) 0.24 b2 (MALADAPTIVE SWLS) 0.13 c (AVOID SWLS) 1.71 a1 b1 0.29 a2 b2 0.45 Total 0.75

Hopelessness (HOPELESS) R 2 = .15 F(3, 176) = 10.27***

[0.085, 0.272] [0.104, 0.792] [0.111, 0.862]

Satisfaction With Life (SWLS) R 2 = .19 F(3, 176) = 14.15***

[0.023, 0.364] [0.052, 0.489] [0.128, 0.654]

[1.266, 0.339] [0.973, 0.127] [1.266, 0.339]

Note. ADAPTIVE = Almost Perfect ScaleRevised (APS-R) Standards subscale; MALADAPTIVE = APS-R Discrepancy subscale; DEP = Kandel Depression Scale; HOPELESS = Becks Hopelessness Scale; SWLS = Satisfaction With Life Scale; AVOID = Experiences in Close RelationshipsRevised (ECR-R) Questionnaires Adult Attachment Avoidance subscale. For paths, C = total effect of independent variable (IV) on dependent variable (DV); a = IV to mediators; b = direct effect of mediator on DV. c = direct effect of IV on DV; a b = indirect effect of IV on DV through mediator. CI = confidence interval. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

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Gnilka, Ashby, & Noble psychological outcomes: hopelessness and life satisfaction. In other words, increased levels of either attachment avoidance or anxiety were related to increased levels of maladaptive perfectionism, which, in turn, led to increased levels of hopelessness, depression, and lower levels of life satisfaction. This fits with Hamacheks (1978) assertion that individuals with maladaptive perfectionism approach life with a fear of failure, which may deepen insecure attachment feelings, leading to increased feelings of hopelessness and depression and a lower overall sense of life satisfaction. In contrast to previous studies (e.g., Wei et al., 2004, 2006), this is one of the first studies to demonstrate that adaptive perfectionism mediated the relationship between avoidant attachment style and both hopelessness and life satisfaction. In this case, adaptive perfectionism may reduce the tendency of individuals to withdraw from intimate relationships, which mitigates feelings of hopelessness and increases overall life satisfaction. This fits the conceptual view of adaptive perfectionism, which suggests that these individuals are less likely to engage in self-criticism as they pursue high standards, allowing them to be more relaxed and focused as they work toward goals and in their interpersonal relationships (Hamachek, 1978). Counselors working with clients with adaptive perfectionism should avoid attempting to adjust or reframe a clients standards or striving; rather, counselors should tailor interventions that focus more on increasing their coping abilities and that assist clients in maintaining healthy relationships.

.18* Avoidant Adult Attachment .22**

Adaptive Perfectionism

.05

C = .18* c = .11* .28*** Maladaptive Perfectionism Adaptive Perfectionism

Depression

.18* Avoidant Adult Attachment .22**

.20***

C = .29** c = .20* .21*** Maladaptive Perfectionism Adaptive Perfectionism

Hopelessness

.18* Avoidant Adult Attachment .22**

.21*** Life Satisfaction .26***

C = .32*** c = .22**

Limitations and Future Research

While this is one of the first studies to investigate how both adaptive perfectionism and maladaptive perfectionism mediate the relationships between attachment styles and various psychological outcomes, this study has a number of limitations that need to be considered. First, because of the crosssectional design, it is not possible to make directional hypotheses. Future researchers should consider using longitudinal designs to better understand how these various constructs interact. Second, this study relied on self-report measures only; there could be some elements of social comparison or self-management that may have influenced the findings. Finally, the participants in this study were college students at one university. Researchers need to replicate the present model with populations (e.g., clinical populations) other than college students before generalizing to those populations. Even considering these limitations, this study provided preliminary evidence that adaptive perfectionism may be a positive mediator of the relationships between avoidant attachment style and both hopelessness and life satisfaction.

Maladaptive Perfectionism

Figure 1 Path Models of the Relations Between Avoidant Adult Attachment Style, Perfectionism, Depression, Hopelessness, and Life Satisfaction
Note. The path coefficients are standardized regression coefficients. For paths, C = total effect of avoidant adult attachment style on outcome variable; c = direct effect of avoidant adult attachment style on outcome variable. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

life satisfaction and positively associated with depression, hopelessness, and both adult attachment styles. This also fits Hamacheks assertion that maladaptive perfectionism leads to avoidance, which rob(s) them of the satisfaction which might ordinarily accompany a superior achievement or at least a well-done job (p. 29). Similar to results found by Wei et al. (2004, 2006), maladaptive perfectionism was found to mediate the relationship between both avoidant and anxious attachment styles and depression. This study also extended the results of Wei et al. in finding that maladaptive perfectionism mediated the relationship between both attachment styles and two additional 82

Implications for Counselor Practice

These findings have several important implications for counselors who work with individuals with perfectionism. Most important, and as previously noted by others (e.g., Ashby et

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Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism and Adult Attachment Styles Table 3 Mediation Analysis Results for Anxious Adult Attachment
Dependent Variable Depression (DEP) R 2 = .18 F(3, 176) = 12.89*** C Path/Effect a1 (ANXIOUS ADAPTIVE) a2 (ANXIOUS MALADAPTIVE) b1 (ADAPTIVE DEP) b2 (MALADAPTIVE DEP) c (ANXIOUS DEP) a1 b1 a2 b2 Total B SE 0.34 0.42 0.92 0.06 0.28 0.36 0.04 0.14 0.15 0.26 0.42 0.92 0.05 0.02 0.27 0.07 0.11 0.13 0.46 0.42 0.92 0.08 0.04 0.47 0.12 0.19 0.22 b .38*** .11 .33*** .02 .20*** .31*** .00 .07** .07* .08 .11 .33*** .24*** .27*** .04 .03 .10* .13** .27*** .11 .33*** .23*** .27*** .15* .03 .09** .12** 95% CI 1.87 0.62 4.30 0.02 0.07 1.54 0.01 0.32 0.33 Hopelessness (HOPELESS) C 0.28 R 2 = .11 a1 (ANXIOUS ADAPTIVE) 0.62 F(3, 176) = 7.46*** a2 (ANXIOUS MALADAPTIVE) 4.30 b1 (ADAPTIVE HOPELESS) 0.15 b2 (MALADAPTIVE HOPELESS) 0.07 c (ANXIOUS HOPELESS) 0.13 a1 b1 0.09 a2 b2 0.32 Total 0.41 Satisfaction With Life (SWLS) C 1.68 R 2 = .17 a1 (ANXIOUS ADAPTIVE) 0.62 F(3, 176) = 12.02*** a2 (ANXIOUS MALADAPTIVE) 4.30 b1 (ADAPTIVE SWLS) 0.26 b2 (MALADAPTIVE SWLS) 0.13 c (ANXIOUS SWLS) 0.96 a1 b1 0.16 a2 b2 0.55 Total 0.72

[0.051, 0.145] [0.081, 0.701] [0.055, 0.667]

[0.048, 0.272] [0.122, 0.709] [0.177, 0.759]

[0.467, 0.066] [1.060, 0.236] [1.256, 0.317]

Note. ADAPTIVE = Almost Perfect ScaleRevised (APS-R) Standards subscale; MALADAPTIVE = APS-R Discrepancy Subscale; DEP = Kandel Depression Scale; HOPELESS = Becks Hopelessness Scale; SWLS = Satisfaction With Life Scale; AVOID = Experiences in Close RelationshipsRevised (ECR-R) Questionnaires Adult Attachment Avoidance subscale; ANXIOUS = ECR-R Adult Attachment Anxious subscale. For paths, C = total effect of independent variable (IV) on dependent variable (DV); a = IV to mediators; b = direct effect of mediator on DV. c = direct effect of IV on DV; a b = indirect effect of IV on DV through mediator. CI = confidence interval. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

al., 2011; DiPrima et al., 2011), counselors should view perfectionism as a multidimensional construct with both healthy and unhealthy dimensions rather than as only problematic. It is important that counselors not presume that a clients perfectionism is necessarily problematic. For example, Ashby et al. (2011) suggested that school counselors working with middle school students with adaptive perfectionism should focus on assisting students to maintain their positive sense of striving and high levels of hope rather than attempt to lower a students high standards or expectations. Similarly, this study demonstrated that adaptive perfectionism mediated the negative relationship between avoidant attachment style and both hopelessness and life satisfaction. In other words, individuals with high levels of avoidant attachment seem to be protected from hopelessness and to be more likely to have increased life satisfaction because of their increased levels of adaptive perfectionism. This may be because individuals with adaptive perfectionism who hold high standards may be less likely to withdraw from important relationships when facing difficulties. This also fits Hamacheks (1978) conceptual framework that an individual with adaptive

perfectionism may have had parents who modeled maintaining communication during difficult times in their relationship. Given this result, counselors should consider systematically assessing for perfectionism in their clients using brief instruments such as the APS-R. Previous researchers have created simple cutoff scores that can be used for various populations, including college students (Rice & Ashby, 2007), married opposite-sex couples (Ashby, Rice, & Kutchins, 2008), and adolescents (Rice, Ashby, & Gilman, 2011). In contrast to adaptive perfectionism, counselors should note that maladaptive perfectionism may actually magnify the negative effects of insecure attachment styles. For example, our results show that maladaptive perfectionism was a significant mediator for both types of attachment dimensions (anxious and avoidance) and all three outcomes (depression, hopelessness, and life satisfaction). Counselors may want to help clients understand how the quality of their intimate relationships may influence their maladaptive perfectionism and thereby increase their tendency toward feelings of hopelessness, depression, and a lower sense of life satisfaction. In one of the only experimental studies investigating treatment

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Gnilka, Ashby, & Noble noted by Hamachek (1978), individuals with maladaptive perfectionism are very sensitive about possible self-criticism and rejection; as a result, counselors should note that their interventions may be viewed as judgment rather than as therapeutic interventions. Counselors may want to anticipate these tendencies in their clients and consider ensuring they make an extra effort in explaining and demonstrating unconditional regard and empathy toward their clients. Counselors may also want to anticipate future ruptures to the working alliance resulting from the sensitive nature of their clients and plan for possible outside consultation and supervision. In addition, counselors should focus on their own levels of wellness given that stress and coping has been shown to influence the working alliance formed with clients (Gnilka, Chang, & Dew, 2012). Last, clients with maladaptive perfectionism may have unrealistic assumptions about the counseling process, such as unrealistically high expectations of the effectiveness of counseling and the amount of progress that should be made in short periods of time. To assist clients with forming realistic standards about counseling, counselors may want to spend time in earlier sessions explaining the counseling process, reasonable goals, and expectations about the counseling process. Counselors should also be prepared for their clients to be very self-critical about their progress (Hamachek, 1978; Pacht, 1984). This tendency to be very self-critical along with rigid, high standards and expectations may make clients with maladaptive perfectionism more likely to blame themselves for a lack of progress in counseling and pose a possible risk for ending counseling prematurely. Counselors may want to have interventions and goals that assist clients in minimizing their tendencies to blame themselves and also their resulting senses of failure. This study contributes to a growing base of literature on the positive and negative aspects of perfectionism, with particular emphasis on how perfectionism mediates the relationship between adult attachment styles and various psychological outcomes. Adaptive perfectionism may help mitigate the negative effects of avoidant attachment styles in contrast to their maladaptive counterparts. Counselors who work with clients who are struggling with maladaptive perfectionism may want to be prepared for more insecure attachment styles, which may lead to increased levels of hopelessness and depression and a reduction in overall life satisfaction.

.11 Anxious Adult Attachment .33***

Adaptive Perfectionism

.02

C = .38*** c = .31*** .20*** Maladaptive Perfectionism Adaptive Perfectionism

Depression

.11 Anxious Adult Attachment .33***

.24***

C = .08 c = .04 .27*** Maladaptive Perfectionism Adaptive Perfectionism

Hopelessness

.11 Anxious Adult Attachment .33***

.23*** Life Satisfaction .27***

C = .27*** c = .15*

Maladaptive Perfectionism

Figure 2 Path Models of the Relations Between Anxious Adult Attachment Style, Perfectionism, Depression, Hopelessness, and Life Satisfaction
Note. The path coefficients are standardized regression coefficients. For paths, C = total effect of anxious adult attachment style on outcome variable; c = direct effect of anxious adult attachment style on outcome variable. *p < .05. ***p < .001.

outcomes for maladaptive perfectionism, Rice, Neimeyer, and Taylor (2011) demonstrated that depth-oriented brief therapy (i.e., coherence therapy) is one promising treatment for individuals with maladaptive perfectionism. The authors found that coherence therapy (see Ecker & Hulley, 2000, for more information) was efficacious in reducing the self-criticalness symptoms of maladaptive perfectionism. In addition, clients with the combination of insecure attachment styles and high levels of maladaptive perfectionism may have significant difficulty forming a positive working alliance with their counselor (Rice & Lopez, 2004). As

References
Ashby, J., Dickinson, W., Gnilka, P., & Noble, C. (2011). Hope as a mediator and moderator of multidimensional perfectionism and depression in middle school students. Journal of Counseling & Development, 89, 131139. Ashby, J., Noble, C., & Gnilka, P. (2012). Multidimensional perfectionism, depression, and satisfaction with life: Differences among perfectionists and tests of a stress-mediation model. Journal of College Counseling, 15, 130143.

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Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism and Adult Attachment Styles

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