Measuring the origins of perfectionism with the Roots questionnaire in university students: sociodemographic and educational correlates

Elena Sandri; Agnese Broccolo; Anna Marchetti; Anna De Benedictis; Giorgia Petrucci; Laura Campanozzi; Mattia Bozzetti; Teresa Rea; Rosaria Alvaro; Maria Grazia De Marinis; Michela Piredda; Elena Sandri; Agnese Broccolo; Anna Marchetti; Anna De Benedictis; Giorgia Petrucci; Laura Campanozzi; Mattia Bozzetti; Teresa Rea; Rosaria Alvaro; Maria Grazia De Marinis; Michela Piredda

doi:10.3934/publichealth.2026019

AIMS Public Health

2026, Volume 13, Issue 1: 353-394. doi: 10.3934/publichealth.2026019

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Research article Special Issues

Measuring the origins of perfectionism with the Roots questionnaire in university students: sociodemographic and educational correlates

1.
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Valencia San Vicente Mártir c/Quevedo, 2–46001, Valencia, Spain
2.
Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier, 1–00133, Rome, Italy
3.
Department of Medicine and Surgery, Research Unit Nursing Science, Campus Bio-Medico di Roma University, Via Alvaro del Portillo 21–00128 Rome, Italy
4.
Research Unit of Nursing Palliative Care, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Via Alvaro del Portillo, 200–00128, Rome, Italy
5.
Research Unit of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Via Alvaro del Portillo, 200–00128 Rome, Italy
6.
Research Unit of Bioethics and Humanities, Campus Bio-Medico di Roma University, Via Alvaro del Portillo, 21–00128 Rome, Italy
7.
Direction of Health Professions, ASST Cremona, 26100 Cremona, Italy
8.
Department Public Health, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Via Pansini, 5–80131–Naples

Received: 29 October 2025 Revised: 05 January 2026 Accepted: 09 January 2026 Published: 16 March 2026

Perfectionism is increasingly prevalent among university students, yet its developmental antecedents are less understood. This study examined the perceived origins of perfectionism, early family relationships, self-acceptance, and social influences using the 16-item Roots questionnaire (Family, Self, Social) and explored sociodemographic and educational correlates. In a multicenter cross-sectional survey, 2103 Italian students (mean age = 23.4; 76% female) completed the Roots scale. Nonparametric group comparisons and k-means clustering were applied. Students generally reported strong parental support, trust, and autonomy, and moderately positive social acceptance. Vulnerabilities emerged in self-related domains: fear of failure and self-critical tendencies were comparatively higher. Subscale means were as follows: Social = 5.10, Family = 5.06, and Self = 3.75 (1–7 scale). Younger students and those from southern/insular regions reported greater family support. Women presented more fear of failure and self-criticism. Catholics, especially practicing students, reported higher family acceptance/trust alongside greater inadequacy concerns. Health sciences students showed stronger family and self-related resources than peers in science/engineering. Offsite and private-university students displayed more protective indicators; scholarships were associated with heightened internal pressure despite some protective features. No group differences emerged in Social Relationships overall, and total Roots scores did not differ by offsite status or scholarship. Clustering (k = 2) yielded a profile with weaker protective factors and higher fear of failure (consistent with “mixed” perfectionism) and a profile with stronger family/social support, higher self-worth, and lower self-criticism (consistent with “adaptive” perfectionism). Findings suggest that while family cohesion and social trust buffer maladaptive perfectionism, fragile self-perceptions remain central targets. Interventions fostering self-compassion, autonomy-supportive climates, and constructive error management may preserve adaptive striving while mitigating risk.
- perfectionism,
- personality,
- sociodemographic factors,
- students,
- university
Citation: Elena Sandri, Agnese Broccolo, Anna Marchetti, Anna De Benedictis, Giorgia Petrucci, Laura Campanozzi, Mattia Bozzetti, Teresa Rea, Rosaria Alvaro, Maria Grazia De Marinis, Michela Piredda. Measuring the origins of perfectionism with the Roots questionnaire in university students: sociodemographic and educational correlates[J]. AIMS Public Health, 2026, 13(1): 353-394. doi: 10.3934/publichealth.2026019

Related Papers:

Abstract

Perfectionism is increasingly prevalent among university students, yet its developmental antecedents are less understood. This study examined the perceived origins of perfectionism, early family relationships, self-acceptance, and social influences using the 16-item Roots questionnaire (Family, Self, Social) and explored sociodemographic and educational correlates. In a multicenter cross-sectional survey, 2103 Italian students (mean age = 23.4; 76% female) completed the Roots scale. Nonparametric group comparisons and k-means clustering were applied. Students generally reported strong parental support, trust, and autonomy, and moderately positive social acceptance. Vulnerabilities emerged in self-related domains: fear of failure and self-critical tendencies were comparatively higher. Subscale means were as follows: Social = 5.10, Family = 5.06, and Self = 3.75 (1–7 scale). Younger students and those from southern/insular regions reported greater family support. Women presented more fear of failure and self-criticism. Catholics, especially practicing students, reported higher family acceptance/trust alongside greater inadequacy concerns. Health sciences students showed stronger family and self-related resources than peers in science/engineering. Offsite and private-university students displayed more protective indicators; scholarships were associated with heightened internal pressure despite some protective features. No group differences emerged in Social Relationships overall, and total Roots scores did not differ by offsite status or scholarship. Clustering (k = 2) yielded a profile with weaker protective factors and higher fear of failure (consistent with “mixed” perfectionism) and a profile with stronger family/social support, higher self-worth, and lower self-criticism (consistent with “adaptive” perfectionism). Findings suggest that while family cohesion and social trust buffer maladaptive perfectionism, fragile self-perceptions remain central targets. Interventions fostering self-compassion, autonomy-supportive climates, and constructive error management may preserve adaptive striving while mitigating risk.

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Center of Excellence for Nursing Scholarship, CECRI, Rome Italy, under Grant number 2.22.8 and 1.24.3.

Conflict of interest

The authors report there are no competing interests to declare.

Data availability statement

Due to ethical approval constraints and the sensitive nature of the data, the raw dataset cannot be made publicly available. To support transparency and reproducibility, the following materials are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author: (i) the variable dictionary and coding framework, (ii) the full Roots questionnaire scoring and recoding procedures, and (iii) the statistical analysis syntax (Jamovi and R scripts, including regression models and latent profile analysis).

Authors' contributions

E. Sandri: Conceptualization, Methodology, Data curation, Formal analysis, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing; A. Broccolo: Data curation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing; A. Marchetti: Conceptualization, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing; A. De Benedictis: Conceptualization, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing; G. Petrucci: Investigation, Visualization, Writing – original draft; L. Campanozzi: Validation, Investigation, Visualization; M. Bozzetti: Formal analysis, Visualization, Writing – review & editing; T. Rea: Validation, Investigation, Visualization; R. Alvaro: Conceptualization, Investigation, Visualization; M. G. De Marinis: Conceptualization, Visualization, Writing – review & editing; M. Piredda: Conceptualization, Data curation, Funding acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing.

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