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A minute to breathe

Box breathing: breathe in for a count of four, hold for four, breathe out for four and hold again. Four rounds, a little over a minute.

Breathe in

Round 1 of 4

Perfectionism

Eight statements, two minutes. The short SAPS scale measures two different things: how high you set your own bar, and how dissatisfied you are with yourself when you fall short of it.

Take the test
  • 2 min
  • 8 statements
  • SAPS scale, 2014

High standards are not a problem in themselves: they help you grow and do things well. Perfectionism becomes exhausting when there is always a gap between the bar and what you achieve, and no result ever feels like enough. So the test looks at both axes at once. How they combine decides whether your perfectionism supports you or wears you down.

Four combinations

  • Healthy perfectionism

    A high bar without a painful gap.

  • Exhausting perfectionism

    A high bar and a constant “not enough”.

  • Free of perfectionism's pressure

    Neither harsh demands nor self-punishment.

  • Dissatisfaction without a high bar

    Ordinary demands, yet still dissatisfied with yourself.

Common questions

Is perfectionism bad?

Not always. Research separates two sides: striving for high standards, which goes with persistence and satisfaction, and painful dissatisfaction with yourself, which goes with anxiety, depression and burnout. The SAPS measures them separately, so it shows which side is stronger in you.

How is the result calculated?

The eight statements form two scales of four: “The bar” and “Dissatisfaction”. Each is averaged from 1 to 7. A high bar with little dissatisfaction is healthy perfectionism; a high bar with strong dissatisfaction is the exhausting kind. The scale has no universal cut-offs, so the lines here are a guide.

Can I get rid of perfectionism?

The goal is usually not to get rid of it but to make it more flexible: keep high standards where they matter and drop the constant feeling of “not enough”. Psychotherapy, work with the inner critic and self-compassion help with this.

Is perfectionism linked to burnout?

Yes, especially its painful side. When no result ever feels like enough, people work themselves to exhaustion without feeling satisfied. If the test shows strong dissatisfaction, take the burnout test too.

What to take next

The SAPS, the Short Almost Perfect Scale (Rice, Richardson, Tueller, 2014), is a shortened version of the APS-R (Slaney et al.); its authors state that no permission is needed to use or translate it. The test is not a diagnosis: it is a way to look at how you relate to standards and mistakes.