Abstract
Perfectionism in sport has various dimensions, including evaluative and excessive concerns and criticism, as well as excessively high personal standards (Flett & Hewitt, 2002). Self-compassion (SC) may influence aspects of perfectionism. This study explored relations between perfectionism and SC in 149 female (Mage = 20.0 years, SD = 1.7 years) and 125 male (Mage = 19.7 years, SD = 1.50 years) varsity athletes using the short version of the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS, Cox et al., 2002), the Sport MPS (SMPS, Gotwals & Dunn, 2009), and the Self-Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003). Males reported significantly higher scores for the perfectionism variables of personal standards [t(3.29) = 3.29] and perceived parental pressure [t(272)= 5.34], while females reported higher scores for the SC subscale of over-identification [t(272) = -3.84]. SC was significantly related to personal standards (r = -.26), concern over mistakes (r = -.33), perceived coach pressure (r = -.48), organization (r = -.21), and self-oriented perfectionism (r = -.22). The SMPS variables accounted for 27% of the variance in SC. SC was significantly predicted by the composite SMPS variables of personal standards perfectionism (r = -.26, ?= -.15) and evaluative concerns perfectionism (r = -.29, ? = -.22; R2 = .10). The MPS was a weak predictor of SC (R2 = .05). Since lower SC is associated with higher scores on perfectionism dimensions, implications during setbacks should be considered.Acknowledgments: This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.