Suicidal tendencies can stem from a combination of various personality traits. Among those attributes, perfectionism stands out, according to a new study.
After interviewing friends and family members of people who had committed suicide, researchers from University of Western Ontario found that 56% of the deceased had demonstrated “perceived external pressure to be perfect”.
“Self-generated and socially based pressures to be perfect are part of the premorbid personality of people prone to suicide ideation and attempts,” the study explains.!
Similarly, 68% of adolescents who had committed suicide were also found to be demanding and having high expectations, which are common traits of perfectionists. A study conducted in the 1990s defines perfectionism as having “high standards of performance which are accompanied by overly critical evaluations of one’s behaviour”.
The study also highlights mistakes, doubts about actions, parental criticism, parental expectations, personal standards and organisation as characteristics of perfectionism. These attributes in turn lead to a sense of worthlessness, setting unobtainable goals, exhibiting an over emphasis on precision and neatness.
‘Suicidality’ was the term used to define the relationship between suicide ideation (suicidal thoughts, intent and threat) and suicide attempt (whereby actual attempts to take one’s life are carried out, though unsuccessfully). Perfectionism can be explained as the gap between how one perceives oneself and how one would ideally like to be. It is the difference between expectation and reality of the individual regarding oneself.
The connection between perfectionism and suicide has been explored previously as well by the late Sidney Blatt in his article 1995 article for American Psychologist, titled “The Destructiveness of Perfectionism”. He had studied three famous individuals who had committed suicide, including British author Alasdair Clayre.
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According to the Almost Perfect Scale-Revised, top perfectionist thoughts include frustration due to the inability to achieve targets, discontentment with one’s achievements and frequent disappointment after completing a task due to the feeling that one could have performed better. Therefore, perfectionism can be seen as a trait which can prevent happiness. Experts also point it out as one of the causes of eating disorders as a perfectionist aims to be aesthetically superior.
“Perfectionists have a harsh way of relating to a self they often find deficient,” it states.“When people experience their social world as pressure filled, judgmental, and hyper critical, they think about and/or engage in various potential means of escape (eg alcohol misuse and binge eating), including suicide.”
Perfectionists also face trouble maintaining stable relationships, which becomes an obstacle to happiness as it leads to emotional dissatisfaction. In America, suicide is the second most common cause of death among adolescents, costing the US economy $51 billion every year.