Child-oriented perfectionism and parental burnout: The moderating role of parents' emotional intelligence

Is it possible that striving for flawlessness and perfection in their children's performance is detrimental to parents? Could it be so harmful that it exposes parents to the risk of burnout? In order to answer these questions, this study adopted a three-dimension model of child-oriented perfectionism (encompassing three dimensions: high standards, order, and discrepancy) and examined the association of these dimensions with parental burnout. The participants were 325 Polish parents (78.8 % mothers) who lived in the same household with at least one child aged 3 to 19 years. The results showed that discrepancy—parents' perception that their children failed to meet their standards and expectations—was a crucial dimension of child-oriented perfectionism that put parents at risk of burnout; however, parents' emotional intelligence mitigated such harmful effects. The study contributes to knowledge about the antecedents of parental burnout and provides insight into possible interventions to counter the risk of striving as parents for perfect children.