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Abstract
The main purpose of the study was to examine if perfectionism (both evaluative concerns perfectionism (ECP) and personal strivings perfectionism (PSP)) and dispositional mindfulness interact to predict perceived stress. Regression analyses indicated that ECP is a strong predictor of perceived stress and that PSP appears to serve as a beneficial and stress-protective factor against stress, though somewhat weakly. Regression analyses also indicated that dispositional mindfulness is a strong protective factor against perceived stress. Results of a 2-way interaction between ECP and PSP indicate that these variables did interact to significantly predict perceived stress above and beyond the main effects of all predictors. However, simple slopes plots revealed that this interaction functions in the opposite direction than hypothesized: as PSP increases, the positive relationship between ECP and perceived stress gets stronger. Specifically, the plot of these slopes demonstrated that PSP only serves as a protective factor for individuals low in ECP; if an individual is high in ECP, PSP has no effect on perceived stress. Therefore, ECP seems to be the driving factor in the experience of perfectionism-related stress. Dispositional mindfulness did not interact with either perfectionism factor to predict perceived stress. Limitations and implications are discussed.