Early adolescence is a turbulent period in the life of most youth. With the transition from childhood into adolescence, problems such as fear of failure, maladaptive perfectionism and anxiety...Show moreEarly adolescence is a turbulent period in the life of most youth. With the transition from childhood into adolescence, problems such as fear of failure, maladaptive perfectionism and anxiety become increasingly common and prominent. To some degree, these are part of the normal development. However, even subclinical anxiety symptoms negatively affect the lives of many children and adolescents. To improve this, more knowledge is needed on the mechanisms underlying generalised anxiety. This study was the first to investigate the relation between fear of failure, maladaptive perfectionism, and generalised anxiety in early adolescents (aged 9-12 years). These concepts were measured using the short-form Performance Failure Appraisal Inventory, the short-form Child and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale and the Youth Anxiety Measure, respectively. We demonstrated that maladaptive perfectionism partially mediates the relation between fear of failure and generalised anxiety. Fear of failure most likely motivates maladaptive perfectionism, which is in turn a risk factor for generalised anxiety symptoms in early adolescents. The current findings therefore highlight the importance of prevention and intervention efforts aimed at reducing fear of failure and maladaptive perfectionism in early adolescents. This would serve to prevent and/or reduce generalised anxiety and its detrimental consequences both in early adolescence itself and possibly later in life as well.Show less
