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Religious Perfectionism: Utilizing Models Of Perfectionism In Treating Religious Clients, Michael D. Adams

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

Past research has asserted that members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (i.e., Mormons) have high rates of religious perfectionism. A historical investigation was performed exam- ining how the perception of perfectionism has changed within the field of psychology. The study first investigates early viewpoints (e.g., Freud, Horney, Adler, Ellis, Beck) that unanimously perceived perfectionism as negative and debilitating in an individual’s psychological adjustment. New research, which understood and measured perfectionism as a multidimensional construct, found both positive and negative components of perfectionism. Different theoretical understandings of perfectionism (e.g., behavioral, attachment, self-conscious emotions, acceptance, Big Five personality …