Self-critical perfectionism and depressive symptoms: Low self-esteem and experiential avoidance as mediators

Abstract This study of community adults (N = 210) aimed to gain a better understanding of the links among self-critical (SC) perfectionism, self-esteem, experiential avoidance, and depressive symptoms. Participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing perfectionism dimensions, self-esteem, experiential avoidance, and depressive symptoms. Confirmatory factor analysis supported SC perfectionism, self-esteem, experiential avoidance, and depressive symptoms as distinct, but related, constructs. Structural equation modeling (SEM) demonstrated that the relation between SC perfectionism and depressive symptoms was mediated by lower self-esteem. SEM also showed that experiential avoidance independently mediated the relation between SC perfectionism and depressive symptoms, controlling for the effects of lower self-esteem. These results distinguish SC perfectionism from lower self-esteem by demonstrating that individuals with higher SC perfectionism have a unique propensity toward experiential avoidance, which, in turn, incrementally explains why they experience higher levels of depressive symptoms.