Povzetek
V prispevku predstavljam pojav naraščanja duševnih težav mladih, predvsem mladostnic, ki ga v zadnjih petnajstih letih zaznavajo številne raziskave, in vlogo naraščajočih šolskih pritiskov in zahtev pri tem porastu. Argumentiram, da je eden od potencialnih psiholoških mehanizmov, prek katerega ti naraščajoči pritiski vplivajo na porast duševnih težav, kot sta depresija in anksioznost, pojav perfekcionizma. Teoretični pregled literature o tem pojavu dopolnjujem s prvoosebnimi refleksijami petih slovenskih študentk dodiplomskega in podiplomskega študija različnih študijskih smeri. Te pokažejo, da 1) je perfekcionizem, izražen kot pretiran trud in težnja po uspehu, lahko zelo škodljiv za celostno psihično blagostanje in funkcionalnost mladostnic, 2) da je eden od najpogostejših virov perfekcionizma kombinacija pomanjkljivega občutka lastne vrednosti in visokih šolskih zahtev. Na podlagi tega izpostavljam pomen bolj niansiranega razumevanja truda, discipline, vztrajnosti, trdega dela, uspeha, dosežkov in ambicioznosti, sploh pri učenkah, dijakinjah in študentkah.
Abstract
Perfectionism: An Often-Overlooked Barrier to Mental Health
The article presents the increasing number of mental problems among young people, especially adolescent girls, which many studies have observed over the last fifteen years, and the role played in this increase by the growing academic pressure and demands. We argue that a potential psychological mechanism through which this growing pressure brings about an increase in mental problems, such as depression and anxiety, is the phenomenon of perfectionism. A theoretical review of literature on this phenomenon is supplemented by first-hand accounts of five Slovenian female undergraduate and postgraduate students of different study programmes. These accounts have shown that 1) perfectionism, expressed as an excessive effort and desire to succeed, can be very harmful to the overall psychological well-being and functioning of adolescent girls; 2) that one of the most common causes of perfectionism is the combination of low self-worth and high academic demands. Based on this, we highlight the importance of a more nuanced understanding of effort, discipline, perseverance, hard work, success, achievements and ambitiousness, especially among female primary school, secondary school and university students.