Perfectionists are more likely to be Cruel, Study Claims

People who are perfectionists do not make the best of friends. A new study found that people who set extremely high standards for others tend to be antisocial, narcissistic and cruel.

For this study, the researchers from University of Kent recruited 229 participants and categorized them into three types of perfectionists, which were "other-oriented," "self-oriented" and "socially prescribed."

The team found that other-oriented perfectionists tended to care the least about social norms and were more likely to have problems with intimacy. These types of people are more likely to make jokes at the expense of others. They also have a sense of superiority and do not socialize well in larger groups.

"Other-oriented perfectionism is a 'dark' form of perfectionism positively associated with narcissistic, antisocial and uncaring personality characteristics," the study author Joachim Stoeber concluded.

The team also defined the other two types of perfectionists and their tendencies. Self-oriented perfectionists show interest in other people and tend to care a lot about social norms. These types of perfectionists also prefer using humor to enhance relationships.

Socially prescribed perfectionists tend to have low self-esteem and are always making self-deprecating jokes. They tend not to respond well to positive feedback.

The research was published in the Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment.