The Perfection Trap by Thomas Curran

THE PERFECTION TRAP by Thomas Curran is subtitled “Embracing the Power of Good Enough” and Curran, a professor of psychology at the London School of Economics, uses different sections of this relatively slim text to define perfectionism and what it does to us, to outline some possible causes, and to offer suggestions for embracing imperfection. It is an ambitious task and the main culprits – the economy, social media, and advertising – which Curran cites offer many examples with most people “seemingly gluttons for punishment,” resulting in “epidemics of burnout and mental distress.” In a generally accessible manner, Curran combines personal stories and experiences with the results of academic studies to bolster his points. For example, he references the phrase “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” and its recent ubiquitous nature, saying “we've taken it for granted that perfectionism hurts because we think that hurt, far from being destructive, is the secret to a life well lived.” Also of particular interest are college students’ perfectionism scores on the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale:  self-oriented and other-oriented scores have risen over time, but not as dramatically as those for socially-prescribed perfectionism. Notes on references like Jean Twenge’s work on the role of smartphones, comprise roughly twenty percent of the text.

Curran’s popular TedTalk speech gives some background and could be a helpful discussion starter for students: