Table of Contents
Key references:
Smith, M. M., Saklofske, D. H., Stoeber, J., & Sherry, S. B. (in press). The Big Three Perfectionism Scale: A new measure of perfectionism. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment.
Primary use / Purpose:
The Big Three Perfectionism Scale (BTPS)
Instructions: Please answer each statement below by putting a circle around the number that best reflects your degree of agreement or disagreement with the following statements. There are seven possible responses to each statement ranging from ‘Disagree Strongly’ (number 1) to ‘Agree Strongly’ (number 5).
- Disagree strongly
- Disagree
- Neither agree nor disagree
- Agree
- Agree strongly
| 1. I strive to be as perfect as possible. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 2. I have doubts about most of my actions. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 3. I am highly critical of other people’s imperfections. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 4. Other people acknowledge my superior ability. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 5. People are disappointed in me whenever I don’t do something perfectly. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 6. I have difficulty forgiving myself when my performance is not flawless. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 7. I am quick to point out other people’s flaws. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 8. When I make a mistake, I feel like a failure. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 9. Everyone expects me to be perfect. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 10. I have a strong need to be perfect. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 11. I am never sure if I am doing things the correct way. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 12. It is important to me that other people do things perfectly. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 13. It bothers me when people don’t notice how perfect I am. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 14. I deserve to always have things go my way. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 15. I am the absolute best at what I do. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 16. My value as a person depends on being perfect. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 17. I am very concerned about the possibility of making a mistake. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 18. When my performance falls short of perfection, I get very mad at myself. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 19. I judge myself harshly when I don’t do something perfectly | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 20. I always need to be aiming for perfection to feel “right” about myself. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 21. I know that I am perfect. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 22. I have doubts about everything I do. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 23. I could never respect myself if I stopped trying to achieve perfection. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 24. The idea of making a mistake frightens me. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 25. I feel uncertain about most things I do. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 26. I feel disappointed with myself, when I don’t do something perfectly | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 27. I never settle for less than perfection from myself. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 28. I am entitled to special treatment. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 29. It is important to me to be perfect in everything I attempt. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 30. I feel dissatisfied with other people, even when I know they are trying their best. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 31. Other people secretly admire my perfection. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 32. I tend to doubt whether I am doing something “right”. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 33. I expect other people to bend the rules for me. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 34. People make excessive demands of me. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 35. When I notice that I have made a mistake, I feel ashamed. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 36. People complain that I expect too much of them. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 37. I demand perfection from my family and friends. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 38. Striving to be as perfect as possible makes me feel worthwhile. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 39. I expect those close to me to be perfect. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 40. My opinion of myself is tied to being perfect. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 41. I get frustrated when other people make mistakes. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 42. I do things perfectly, or I don’t do them at all. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 43. Everything that other people do must be flawless. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 44. Making even a small mistake would upset me. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 45. People expect too much from me. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
Copyright by Martin M. Smith. All rights reserved. Permission granted to use and reproduce this measure for academic and research purposes.
The BTPS assesses three higher-order global factors (rigid perfectionism, self-critical perfectionism, narcissistic perfectionism) via 10 lower-order perfectionism facets (self-oriented perfectionism, self- worth contingencies, concern over mistakes, doubts about actions, self-criticism, socially prescribed perfectionism, other-oriented perfectionism, hypercriticism, grandiosity, entitlement). See below for scoring .
Scoring Directions for the Big Three Perfectionism Scale (BTPS)
- Self-oriented perfectionism (SOP; 5 items): Sum of items 1, 10, 27, 29, and 42
- Self-worth contingencies (SWC; 5 items): Sum of items 16, 20, 23, 38, and 40
- Concern over mistakes (COM; 5 items): Sum of items: 8, 17, 24, 35, and 44
- Doubts about action (DAA; 5 items): Sum of items: 2, 11, 22, 25, 32
- Self-criticism (SC; 4 items): Sum of items: 6, 18, 19, and 26
- Socially-prescribed perfectionism (SPP; 4 items): Sum of items: 5, 9, 34, and 45
- Other-oriented perfectionism (OOP; 5 items): Sum of items: 12, 36, 37, 39, and 43
- Hypercriticism (HC; 4 items): Sum of items: 3, 7, 30, and 41
- Entitlement (ENT: 4 Items): Sum of items: 13, 14, 28, and 33
- Grandiosity (GRAN: 4 Items): Sum of items 4, 15, 21, and 31
- Rigid perfectionism: Sum Self-oriented perfectionism and Self-worth
- Self-critical perfectionism: Sum Concern over mistakes, Doubts about actions, Self-criticism, and Socially-prescribed
- Narcissistic Perfectionism: Sum Other-oriented perfectionism, Hypercriticism, Entitlement, and
Reference for the BTPS:
Smith, M. M., Saklofske, D. H., Stoeber, J., & Sherry, S. B. (2016). The big three perfectionism scale: A new measure of perfectionism. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment.