The Scale of Perfectionism and Excellencism (SCOPE): an adolescent-based validation study for the measurement of perfectionism and excellencism

ABSTRACT

Objective

We aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Scale of Perfectionism and Excellencism (SCOPE) in a novel sample, Australian adolescents.

Method

The cross-sectional sample consisted of 350 participants (79 male, 271 female; mean age 17.9 years, age range = 15–20 years) from a secondary 10 school and university who completed a web-based questionnaire.

Results

Confirmatory factor analyses showed that the original two-factor structure was replicated and invariant across gender, educational setting, and language (English as first or second language). Cronbach alphas indicated good internal consistency: Excellencism (.95) and Perfectionism (.97). We found evidence for divergent and convergent validity. Academic performance was associated with Excellencism, independent of 15 Perfectionism (partial r = .32; p < .01), with no discernible relationship with Perfectionism. We explored concurrent validity and found mixed results with associations being in the expected direction only for the criterion measures that might be conceptualised as capturing negative-type perfectionism.

Conclusions

This study provides valuable insights into SCOPE and the distinct constructs of Excellencism and Perfectionism. Findings indicate Excellencism is associated with more positive 20 academic and mental health outcomes compared to Perfectionism. Further research is warranted to explore long-term outcomes of these constructs to potentially inform educational practice, mental health promotion, and early intervention.

KEY POINTS

What is already known about this topic:

•  (1) Perfectionism has been increasing over the last few decades with higher levels found in young people.

•  (2) Adolescence is an important developmental period for perfectionism and mental health issues.

•  (3) Research evidence indicates perfectionistic concerns are clearly linked to negative outcomes, however findings regarding perfectionistic strivings have been mixed.

What this topic adds:

•  (1) This is one of the first studies to examine the psychometric properties of the SCOPE measure outside of a Northern American sample.

•  (2) The study suggests that the recently created SCOPE measure may be a promising tool.

•  (3) Future work should further seek to refine the psychometric properties of the SCOPE to continue to better distinguish the positive and negative aspects of perfectionistic behaviour.

KEYWORDS:

• Perfectionism
• excellencism
• academic achievement
• well-being
• illbeing
• adolescence

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).