Suicidal ideation is a key precursor to suicidal behaviour. It is therefore important that we identify factors that predict suicidal ideation. Affective Forecasting, estimations of future emotional reactions, is an important future-oriented process that underlies daily decision making and has potential to be implicated in the emergence of suicidal ideation. In this study, we aimed to test cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between negative affective forecasting towards various hypothetical future life events and test the moderating effect of negative affective forecasting on the association between depression, entrapment, and defeat and suicidal ideation. We used a short-term longitudinal design with data across two timepoints from a total of 262 participants aged between 18 and 81 (72.52% identified as females). Participants completed questionnaires online assessing depressive symptoms, defeat, entrapment, and suicidal ideation and indicated their negative affective predictions towards three hypothetical scenarios of future life events. Higher negativity in affective forecasting was cross-sectionally and longitudinally associated with higher levels of suicidal ideation at Time 1 and 2. Negative affective forecasting did not have significant main effects on suicidal ideation above and beyond known risk factors (i.e., depressive symptoms, defeat, and entrapment). However, negative affective forecasting moderated the effect of these risk factors on suicidal ideation, exacerbating the effect of these factors at higher levels of negative affective forecasting. In conclusion, we show that affective forecasting is an important factor that should be studied further in relation to suicide risk and considered in clinical interventions.

Perfectionism is a multidimensional personality characteristic associated with mental health problems. However, its features are commonly misunderstood, and many people are unaware of the risks it can pose. This study aimed to develop the first self-report measure of perfectionism literacy. That is, the degree of knowledge someone has about perfectionism, its features and consequences, and when and where to seek help if needed. The Perfectionism Literacy Questionnaire (PLQ) was validated over four stages using four samples of community adults ( N = 1078 total; Mage = 37.17 years). In stage one, we generated a pool of items. In stage two, we used exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to derive a 29-item, seven-factor measure. In stage three, we assessed relationships between the PLQ, perfectionism, and attitudes toward help-seeking for mental health support and found the PLQ is distinguishable from these constructs. In stage four, we examined whether the PLQ was responsive to change following an educational video on perfectionism. We found tentative evidence that minimal intervention can increase perfectionism literacy. Our findings suggest that the PLQ is valid and reliable and may be useful for educational purposes and primary prevention of mental health problems.

BACKGROUND:Self-harm and suicidal thoughts and behaviours among young people are significant global public health concerns. Although most young people with thoughts of self-harm or suicide do not act on their thoughts, it is important to identify factors that distinguish thoughts of self-harm and suicide from behaviours. To date, there are no reviews distinguishing self-harm and suicidal behaviours from thoughts of self-harm and suicide in young people or that have synthesised factors distinguishing self-harm behaviours from self-harm ideation. The current review addresses these gaps in the literature. METHODS:We systematically searched: CINAHL, Embase, Medline, PsycINFO, Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection, and Web of Science Core Collection for articles published between 2011 and April 2024. Ninety-nine studies met inclusion criteria, with 92 articles examining risk and protective factors that distinguished suicide attempts from suicidal ideation and seven articles examining factors that distinguished self-harm behaviours from self-harm ideation. Using a narrative synthesis approach, studies were grouped by their outcome variable (e.g., self-harm or suicide) and then by risk and protective factors. RESULTS:While findings were inconsistent, the presence of non-suicidal self-injury, physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, violence, and family factors (e.g., family conflict) distinguished suicidal attempts from suicidal ideation. By contrast, the presence of parental factors (e.g., parental connectedness) and greater academic achievement were protective and distinguished suicidal ideation from suicide attempts. Being female, exposure to self-harm/suicide, and impulsivity distinguished self-harm behaviours from self-harm ideation. There was no evidence of protective factors that distinguished self-harm behaviours from self-harm ideation. CONCLUSIONS:The current review highlights important risk and protective factors that distinguish suicidal and self-harm behaviours from suicidal and self-harm ideation in young people. Our review has important implications for intervention and prevention efforts as identifying key risk and protective factors can improve risk assessment for young people experiencing thoughts of self-harm and suicide and enable more targeted interventions.

The Perfectionism Social Disconnection Model (PSDM) and the Existential Model of Perfectionism and Depressive Symptoms (EMPDS) are promising models of perfectionism and psychopathology. However, research examining suicide ideation within the PSDM is scarce, and no research has examined suicide ideation as an outcome in the EMPDS. Moreover, tests of the PSDM and EMPDS have been conducted separately and most research has examined the PSDM and EMPDS using cross-sectional or two-wave longitudinal designs, which do not provide a satisfactory test of mediation. In the current study, we addressed these limitations by testing whether perfectionism confers vulnerability to suicide ideation via feelings of mattering and anti-mattering (from the PSDM) and via difficulty accepting the past (from the EMPDS) in a three-wave longitudinal design in two independent samples of undergraduate students and community adults. Participants completed measures on three occasions over 6 weeks. Findings revealed that socially prescribed perfectionism indirectly predicted suicide ideation via difficulty accepting the past in both samples. In addition, in the undergraduate sample only, socially prescribed perfectionism indirectly predicted higher suicide ideation via anti-mattering, and self-oriented perfectionism indirectly predicted higher suicide ideation via mattering. Based on our findings, we advocate for future research to include suicide ideation in the PSDM and EMPDS, to integrate explanatory models, and to examine a mattering-specific EMPDS.

The chapters of this book have so far focused on trait perfectionism – which has been the main focus of perfectionism research in sport, dance, and exercise. However, perfectionism manifests at multiple levels and includes cognitive elements that are essential when seeking to understand its full effects. With this in mind, this chapter focuses on perfectionism cognitions and how this type of ruminative over-thinking offers further insight into the inner experiences of athletes, dancers, and exercisers. Only a handful of studies have examined perfectionism cognitions in these domains so far. However, these studies show the importance of perfectionism cognitions and mirror more extensive work outside of sport. The chapter starts with a brief overview of the Comprehensive Model of Perfectionistic Behaviour and Perfectionism Cognitions Theory. We then review and discuss existing research examining perfectionism cognitions in sport, dance, and exercise. We conclude the chapter by identifying future directions for research and key research questions that should be prioritized.

Are feelings of not mattering an antecedent of depressive symptoms, a consequence, or both? Most investigations focus exclusively on feelings of not mattering as an antecedent of depressive symptoms. Our current study examines a vulnerability model, a complication model, and a reciprocal relations model according to a cross-lagged panel model (CLPM) and a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM). A sample of 197 community adults completed the General Mattering Scale (GMS), the Anti-Mattering Scale (AMS), and a depression measure at three time points (i.e., baseline, 3 weeks, and 6 weeks). GMS and AMS scores were associated robustly with depressive symptoms at each time point. Other results highlighted the need to distinguish levels of anti-mattering and mattering. CLPM analyses supported a reciprocal relations model of anti-mattering (assessed by the AMS) and depressive symptoms and a complication model linking mattering (assessed by the GMS) and depressive symptoms. The RI-CLPM analyses provided tentative support only for a complication model of anti-mattering and depressive symptoms. Our findings highlight the differences between measures of the mattering construct and the need to adopt a temporal perspective that considers key nuances and the interplay among feelings of mattering, feelings of not mattering, and depression.

This study tests whether perfectionism is a vulnerability factor for distress among female adolescents in the context of appearance-focused social comparison and use of social media. We hypothesized that perfectionism predicts greater depressive symptoms and lower body appreciation following appearance-focused upward social comparisons. One-hundred and thirty-five female adolescents (Mage = 14.70 years, SD = 0.46) completed measures of rigid and self-critical perfectionism once, and depressive symptoms, body appreciation, and appearance-focused upward social comparison once a week for four weeks. Self-critical perfectionism positively predicted depressive symptoms and negatively predicted body appreciation. Self-critical perfectionism also interacted with appearance-focused upward social comparisons to predict greater depressive symptoms and lower body appreciation. No effects emerged for rigid perfectionism. Findings suggest self-critical perfectionism may be an important vulnerability factor for female adolescents following appearance-focused social comparison when using social media.

OBJECTIVES:Uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine continues to be lower in ethnically diverse communities in the UK even though they are disproportionally affected by the negative effects of the virus. To better understand why uptake is lower, we explored factors that may underpin vaccine hesitancy and intention to vaccinate in these communities with an emphasis on medical mistrust and feelings of mattering.DESIGN:One hundred and sixty-one adults from ethnically diverse backgrounds who had not had a COVID-19 vaccination completed an online questionnaire that contained closed (quantitative) and open (qualitative) questions.RESULTS:Analyses of quantitative questions revealed that medical mistrust, but not feelings of mattering, was related to COVID-19 hesitancy and likelihood of getting a COVID-19 vaccination. Of the three components of medical mistrust, suspicion was the only unique predictor and was related to higher hesitancy towards the COVID-19 vaccine and lower likelihood of getting a COVID-19 vaccine. Analyses of the responses to the qualitative questions were organised into four themes: (1) Beliefs that taking the vaccine is an important social responsibility; (2) Experiences of pressure to take the vaccine and limited choice; (3) General mistrust linked to personal experiences and the health system; (4) Being concerned about social/medical restrictions if not vaccinated.CONCLUSION:The findings suggest that medical mistrust may partly explain why uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine is lower in ethnically diverse communities in the UK and appears to play a role in how people weigh a sense of responsibility and pressure against health and social concerns in making the decision to be vaccinated.

The Perfectionism Social Disconnection Model (PSDM) is a theory-driven model of the relationship between perfectionism, depressive symptoms, and suicide ideation. However, to date, tests of the PSDM have not included anti-mattering (i.e., feelings of not mattering alongside feelings of insignificance and marginalization) as a mediator or suicide ideation as an outcome. Critically, too, most research on the PSDM has relied on cross-sectional or two-wave longitudinal designs. Our study, then, examines whether perfectionism confers vulnerability to depressive symptoms and suicide ideation via mattering and anti-mattering in a three-wave longitudinal design. A sample of 181 undergraduates completed study measures on three occasions over six weeks. Findings provide strong support for the notion that socially prescribed perfectionism confers vulnerability to depressive symptoms via anti-mattering. Our findings suggest a need for future research on anti-mattering and suicide ideation, especially within the context of the PSDM and using longitudinal designs.

Perfectionism has long been recognised as a psychological factor that can enhance or interfere with the healthy adjustment of young students who are academically gifted. However, it is apparent from existing research that a wide range of methods have been adopted to study perfectionism in this population. To identify what is currently known about perfectionism among these students and what future work needs to be undertaken, a systematic review of existing research is required. The aim of our study was to provide a first such review. In doing so, we utilised the two-factor perfectionism model which differentiates between perfectionistic strivings (PS) and perfectionistic concerns (PC). A systematic literature search returned 36 studies examining perfectionism in young students identified as academically gifted that varied in study characteristics, methodological quality, and findings. Of these studies, 24 adopted a variable-based approach to examining perfectionism (i.e., examined PS and PC) and 12 adopted a group-based approach to examining perfectionism (i.e., examined groups with varying levels of PS and PC). The findings show that the distinction between PS and PC is extremely important. Specifically, while PC are likely to be uniformly debilitating for students who are academically gifted, PS are associated with more mixed outcomes. This is also the case when the two dimensions of perfectionism are considered in combination, with levels of PC being the key factor in determining the outcomes associated with perfectionism. Future research needs to build on the existing evidence base in a systematic fashion and prioritise longitudinal research and intervention studies.

People high on socially prescribed perfectionism perceive intense external pressures to be perfect, and these pressures place them at risk for depressive symptoms. Likewise, the external pressures experienced by people high on socially prescribed perfectionism appear, in part, to be a legitimate response to members of their social network (influencers) who demand perfection from others (other-oriented perfectionists). Nonetheless, it is unclear whose other-oriented perfectionism (e.g., parents or peers) is more relevant to the socially prescribed perfectionism-depressive symptoms relationship. To address this, we studied 307 undergraduate targets and 692 influencers (mothers, fathers, siblings, peers, and romantic partners). Targets completed measures of socially prescribed perfectionism and depressive symptoms. Influencers completed measures of other-oriented perfectionism and narcissism. Path analysis revealed other-oriented perfectionism in mothers and siblings, but not other-oriented perfectionism in fathers, peers, or romantic partners, indirectly predicted targets' depressive symptoms through targets' socially prescribed perfectionism. Conversely, indirect effects corresponding to influencers' narcissism were not significant. Investigators are encouraged to continue using multisource designs to test how other-oriented perfectionism in parental and non-parental influencers depresses the recipients of their perfectionistic demands.

The Perfectionism Social Disconnection Model (PSDM) is a promising integrative model explaining relations between socially prescribed perfectionism (i.e., perceiving others require perfection) and depressive symptoms. Yet, the nature of the social disconnection proposed by the PSDM requires explication. Likewise, longitudinal tests of the PSDM are scarce. We addressed these important limitations by extending, testing, and supporting the PSDM in 127 undergraduates using a five-month, two-wave longitudinal design. Our model posited socially prescribed perfectionism generates depressive symptoms via two putative triggers: interpersonal discrepancies (i.e., viewing oneself as falling short of others' expectations) and social hopelessness (i.e., negative expectations concerning future interpersonal relationships). Congruent with the PSDM, bias-corrected bootstrapped tests of mediation revealed socially prescribed perfectionism conferred vulnerability for depressive symptoms five months later via interpersonal discrepancies and social hopelessness. Furthermore, results supported the specificity of our model beyond self-oriented perfectionism and other-oriented perfectionism. Findings lend credence and coherence to theoretical accounts suggesting socially prescribed perfectionism has a generative role in the development of psychosocial environments conducive to depressive symptoms. Moreover, our study offers investigators a conceptual framework for understanding the specific interpersonal mechanisms involved in the socially prescribed perfectionism-depressive symptom link.

Poster presented at British Society for the Psychology of Individual Differences Conference, Edinburgh, Scotland.