10.No matter how much I do, it’s never
enough
11.People expect me to be perfect 1 2 3 4 5
12.I must be efficient at all times 1 2 3 4 5
13.My goals are very high 1 2 3 4 5
14.I can always do better, even if things are
almost perfect12 3 4 5
15.I expect to be perfect 1 2 3 4 5
16.Why can’t things be perfect? 1 2 3 4 5
17.My work has to be superior 1 2 3 4 5
18.It would be great if everything in my life
were perfect12 3 4 5
19.My work should be flawless 1 2 3 4 5
20.Things are seldom ideal 1 2 3 4 5
21.How well am I doing? 1 2 3 4 5
22.I can’t do this perfectly 1 2 3 4 5
23.I certainly have high standards 1 2 3 4 5
24.Maybe I should lower my goals 1 2 3 4 5
25.I’m too much of a perfectionist 1 2 3 4 5
Notes :
Scoring: Total score 5the sum of all 25 items (no reverse-coded items)
Reproduced with permission.
Perfectionistic Self-Presentation Scale (PSPS)
(Hewitt et al., 2003 ).
Variable
Perfectionistic self-presentation can be construed as b eing similar to the highly idealized self-presentation
described by Goffman (1959) in his classic work The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life .W h i l et r a i tp e r f e c t i o n -
ism indicates one’s disposition, perfectionistic self-pre sentation represents the defensive process of needing to
appear perfect or to not to appear imperfect to others. Perfectionistic self-presentation is correlated with trait
perfectionism dimensions such as socially prescribed perfectionism (see Hewitt et al., 2003 ). It is possible to
distinguish two types of socially prescribed perfectionists. Some people respond to social pressures to be per-
fect by rebelling and ‘refusing to play the game.’ These people would be relatively low in perfectionistic self-
presentation. However, others respond to the pressure to be perfect by doing their utmost to seem as perfect
as possible in public situations, and, in all likelihood, avoiding situations that will put their imperfections on
display.
Description
The 27-item Perfectionistic Self-Presentation Scale (PSPS) assesses three facets labeled: perfectionistic self-
promotion (i.e., the need to appear perfect to others /C010 items), the nondisplay of imperfection (i.e., the need to
avoid appearing imperfect to others /C010 items), and nondisclosure of imperfection (i.e., the need to avoid dis-
closing imperfections to others /C07 items) ( Hewitt et al., 2003 ).
Sample
The original sample of 661 students had mean scores of 37.95 ( SD510.64) for perfectionistic self-promotion,
41.68 ( SD510.36) for non-display of imperfections, and 22.17 ( SD57.50) for nondisclosure of imperfections.
A clinical sample of 1041 patients had mean scores of 43.29 ( SD512.55) for perfectionistic self-promotion, 45.26
(SD512.76) for non-display of imperfections, and 25.87 ( SD58.89) for nondisclosure of imperfections. Levels of
perfectionistic self-presentation are comparable when the inventory is administered via the Internet versus via
paper-and-pencil measures ( Pettit, 2002 ).611 OVERVIEW OF THE MEASURES
V. VICES AND VIRTUES