BYU study examines ‘toxic perfectionism’ in Latter-day Saints

PROVO, Utah (ABC4) — Over the past eight years researchers from Brigham Young University have studied perfectionism in young people and its impact on religiosity and mental health, revealing some surprising results.

Scholars define perfectionism as a tendency to strive for perfection, intolerance for mistakes, and being overly critical of oneself or others. Led by Dr. Justin Dyer, BYU’s team of researchers aimed to understand how this could affect religious and non-religious youth.

The team’s research began by focusing on young people between the ages of 12 to 14. The team followed their growth and change until the group reached the ages of 20 to 22. Half of the group was made up of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, while the other half came from various other religious backgrounds and affiliations.

“We wanted to see how their spirituality, religiosity, mental health and family life progressed during these years,” Dyer told ABC4.com.

Scholars have previously noted that perfectionism is likely elevated among members of the Utah-based church.

Contrary to previous research, the team’s data showed that just 12% of Latter-day Saint youth experienced high levels of perfectionism, while 20% of atheist and agnostic youth experienced the same.

Dyer says this unexpected finding is due to a distinction among many Latter-day Saints between perfectionism and high standards.

“Toxic perfectionism isn’t about having high standards. It’s not even about not meeting those high standards. It’s about how you feel about yourself when you don’t meet those standards,” Dyer said.

However, data also showed that former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints experienced high levels of perfectionism more than any other group, with 27% of youth having perfectionist traits.

According to fellow BYU researcher Michael Goodman, those who disaffiliate with their faith often experienced high levels of perfectionism before and after leaving, leading researchers to believe that disaffiliation didn’t seem to increase or decrease perfectionism levels.

Morgan Dennis, a member of the church, has spent years with religious scrupulosity — an extreme form of perfectionism in relation to religious practice.

“At least for me and other people who experience toxic perfectionism and scrupulosity, there’s a lot of ‘I don’t deserve good things because I’m bad,’” Dennis said, adding that being a Latter-day Saint is more about pursuing wholeness through Christ.

“When we experience toxic perfectionism, it could be because we’re misunderstanding what the church actually teaches and what the doctrine actually is,” Dyer said.

Many groups exist inside and outside of the Church to help those who struggle with toxic perfectionism.

“Showing people that they’re loved, not despite or because of anything, but with everything they’re experiencing, and that God loves them — just reminding them of that — is the most important thing,” Dennis told ABC4.com.

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