Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
Major
Elementary Education
Minor
NA
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Dr. Sean Simons
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
The present study includes the creation, implementation, and results of an eight-session, school-based, primary-prevention program designed for gifted and talented middle school students. The unit, “Growth to Healthy Perfectionism” is designed to address each of the six dimensions of perfectionism according to Dr. Randy Frost, which include Parental Expectations (PE), Parental Concern (PC), Personal Standards (PS), Doubts About Actions (DA), Concern Over Mistakes (CM), and Organization (O) with the intent of decreasing unhealthy perfectionism and increasing healthy perfectionism in students.
The study was conducted in a southern middle school in a classroom of gifted and talented students in seventh and eighth grades. Prior to beginning the unit, students rated themselves in each of the six dispositions using the Goals and Work Habits Survey created by Patricia Schuler. Each lesson in the unit includes an introduction to the disposition, a hands-on activity designed to equip students with strategies to decrease negative thoughts that may be associated with any of the six dispositions, and challenges each student to reflect on how they can implement these strategies in their daily lives to decrease unhealthy perfectionism and increase healthy perfectionism. At the conclusion of the unit, students once again completed the Goals and Works Habits Survey and reflected on how their view of perfectionism has changed after participating in Growth to Healthy Perfectionism.
Throughout the paper, the six dimensions of perfectionism are discussed in detail, along with the three types of perfectionists; non-perfectionist, healthy perfectionist, and unhealthy perfectionist.
Spring Scholars Week 2020 Event
Honors College Senior Theses Presentations
GROWTH TO HEALTHY PERFECTIONISM: AN INVESTIGATION OF PERFECTIONIST TENDENCIES WITH GIFTED AND TALENTED ADOLESCENTS
The present study includes the creation, implementation, and results of an eight-session, school-based, primary-prevention program designed for gifted and talented middle school students. The unit, “Growth to Healthy Perfectionism” is designed to address each of the six dimensions of perfectionism according to Dr. Randy Frost, which include Parental Expectations (PE), Parental Concern (PC), Personal Standards (PS), Doubts About Actions (DA), Concern Over Mistakes (CM), and Organization (O) with the intent of decreasing unhealthy perfectionism and increasing healthy perfectionism in students.
The study was conducted in a southern middle school in a classroom of gifted and talented students in seventh and eighth grades. Prior to beginning the unit, students rated themselves in each of the six dispositions using the Goals and Work Habits Survey created by Patricia Schuler. Each lesson in the unit includes an introduction to the disposition, a hands-on activity designed to equip students with strategies to decrease negative thoughts that may be associated with any of the six dispositions, and challenges each student to reflect on how they can implement these strategies in their daily lives to decrease unhealthy perfectionism and increase healthy perfectionism. At the conclusion of the unit, students once again completed the Goals and Works Habits Survey and reflected on how their view of perfectionism has changed after participating in Growth to Healthy Perfectionism.
Throughout the paper, the six dimensions of perfectionism are discussed in detail, along with the three types of perfectionists; non-perfectionist, healthy perfectionist, and unhealthy perfectionist.