Graduate Student Research Symposium 2026

Perfectionism is a personality trait characterized by the tendency to set exceptionally high standards coupled with harsh self-criticism for failing to meet them. In academic settings, this manifests as heightened concern over mistakes, persistent pressure to excel, and sensitivity to social comparison. While it can drive achievement and motivation, it is also linked to distress and poor adjustment. This study examined how achievement goals, specifically the 2×2 framework of mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals, mediate this relationship among 723 Filipino secondary students. Path analysis revealed that academic perfectionism positively predicted all four goal orientations. Notably, performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals served as distinct mediating pathways: perfectionism was associated with lower distress through performance-approach goals, but with higher distress through performance-avoidance goals. The findings highlight how cultural pressures around academic success may shape the motivational pathways through which perfectionism affects well-being.