Modelling the relationship between perfectionism, self-compassion and psychological health outcomes in kidney transplant recipients

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects around 850 million people globally, imposing significant physical and psychological health burdens. This study tested a model of how perfectionism, via its effect on self-compassion, stress and coping, can affect health outcomes such as health-related quality of life and intuitive eating for people with long-term conditions, which had not been previously tested in a sample of people with CKD. To address this gap, structural equation modelling was used to model the association between these constructs in a sample of kidney transplant recipients (n=354) and a non-CKD comparison group (n=400). Results showed that ‘maladaptive’ perfectionism significantly predicted lower levels of self-compassion, coping, intuitive eating and health-related quality of life, and higher levels of stress. However, self-compassion was found to buffer this effect, demonstrating that higher levels of this positive self-attitude could help to ameliorate the negative associations between maladaptive perfectionism and health outcomes.