Poster Presentation 6th World Congress on Positive Psychology 2019

Maladaptive Perfectionism and Depressive Symptoms among Adolescents: The Moderating Role of Parenting Style (#543)

Barbara Chuen Yee Lo 1 2 3 , Jaclyn Yeung 3 , Sho Chan 1
  1. Department of Applied Psychology, Lingnan University, Hong Kong
  2. Wofoo Joseph Lee Consulting and Counselling Psychology Research Centre, Lingnan University, Hong Kong
  3. Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Depression is a prevalent disorder and leading factor of illness for adolescents (WHO, 2014). Maladaptive perfectionism has found to be a significant predictor of anxiety and depression (Bieling et al., 2004), which could make a detrimental impact on adolescents’ psychological wellbeing (Di Schiena, Luminet, Philippot, & Douilliez, 2012). Previous research has investigated the association between maladaptive perfectionism and depression regarding underlying factors such as attributional styles (Chang & Sanna, 2001) and parenting styles (Hamachek, 1978). However, limited studies have examined the moderating role of parenting styles in this relationship. The current research therefore investigated the moderating role of authoritative parenting in the association between maladaptive perfectionism and depressive symptoms among adolescents in Hong Kong context. A longitudinal study was conducted consisting of two phases (baseline and 12-month follow up), with 116 adolescents participated (55 boys and 80 girls age ranged between 9–15 years old). Results from regression analyses found that authoritative parenting had a significant moderating role on the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism at baseline and depressive symptoms at 12month follow up. The current research contributes new insight to clinical field, suggesting the protective power of authoritative parenting in buffering against the impacts of maladaptive perfectionism in Chinese contexts.