Our culture’s youth has adapted an extreme perfectionist habit, with many children sacrificing sleep and over-stressing in order to receive an A in school. School environments have become places of comparison, with students nowadays evaluating themselves based on their peers’ accomplishments. This consistent comparison between students can lead to students becoming maladaptive perfectionists, stressing themselves out to the point of exhaustion in order to receive the best grade in their class. Today, 3 out of 10 children can be considered a “maladaptive perfectionist” because their drives for extreme perfectionism are harming their mental health. Research has found that youth who are high in perfectionism evaluate themselves negatively, but deem it a necessary component to their academic performance. This harmful self-appraisal is reinforced when people praise them for their academic success, and results in children downplaying their own accomplishments instead of celebrating them.
Lately, students have been feeling more obligated to achieve outstanding academic performance due to the rate at which college admissions have been growing more selective. This has led some parents, out of concern for their children’s academic future, to increase the pressure they put on their children in school. However, it has been found that high parental expectations can be just as harmful as criticism, as this pressure may push children towards high levels of perfectionism. Students who become maladaptive perfectionists may experience exhaustion, anxiety, and a loss of motivation as a result of their own and their parents’ high expectations for themselves.
At the end of the day, it is never a bad thing for children to hold themselves to a healthy and reasonable academic standard. Children who engage more in school have been found to have more positive interactions with others. To combat maladaptive perfectionism, the author discourages students from using a perfectionist view, and instead suggests that they should focus on building resilience. This can be done through the help of parents, schools and communities, as they can encourage children to practice self-care and resilience all the while setting reasonable standards for themselves.
Kylie Robinshaw
Research Assistant, UConn KIDS
Article Link: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brave-voices/202209/is-our-culture-overachievement-exhausting-our-youth