Perfectionism in General Medicine Interns of Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2021

Background: Perfectionism has positive and negative aspects that can have different academic or individual consequences for college students. Objective: This study aims to investigate the perfectionism in general medicine interns and the role of demographic factors. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 general medicine interns of Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2021 who were selected using a convenience sampling method and completed a demographic form and the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale. Independent t-test and Mann-Whitney U test were used in SPSS v.19 software for data analysis. Results: The participation rate was 84.5% (n=169). The maladaptive and adaptive perfectionism mean scores were 62.4±12.2 and 45.1±5.6, respectively. Students aged <25 years had higher scores in subscale of concern over mistakes (P=0.002). Male students had higher scores in parental expectations (P=0.002) and personal standards (P=0.044). Married students scored higher in parental expectations (P=0.031) and parental criticism (P=0.002) and lower scores in personal standards (P=0.002). Students with a history of physical illness had higher scores in personal standards (P=0.006) and lower scores in organization (P=0.045). In married students, more maladaptive perfectionism and less adaptive perfectionism were reported (P=0.018). Conclusion: Maladaptive perfectionism of general medicine interns is at moderate level while their adaptive perfectionism is at high level. Young age, gender and marital status affect their perfectionism.