Attention Bias in Perfectionism: Prolonged Dwell Time on Critical Faces Partially Mediates a Link Between Perfectionistic Concerns and Psychological Distress
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Perfectionism is a transdiagnostic vulnerability factor implicated in emotional disorders, including depression and anxiety. Yet, the mechanisms through which perfectionism contributes to psychological distress are only partly understood. A candidate mechanism is attention allocation during social interactions, as attention to evaluative cues may influence subsequent perceptions and affective responses. The present study used eye tracking to examine whether perfectionistic concerns (PC) and perfectionistic strivings (PS) are associated with attention biases toward socially evaluative cues, as indicated by prolonged dwell time on facial expressions of criticism as opposed to appreciation in a free viewing task. For 148 participants (82% female, 1% diverse; age: 18 – 57 years, M = 24 years, SD = 6.4), the proportional dwell-time on critical faces was related to self-reported PC as well as state and trait measures of psychological distress (unpleasant mood and depressiveness). In latent-variable analyses, PC showed small to moderate positive unique associations with the proportional dwell time on critical faces. Path analyses further indicated that this dwell time partially mediated the associations of PC with unpleasant mood and depressiveness. These findings provide novel evidence that PC are linked to biases in attention toward social cues of criticism, suggesting a pathway through which PC may contribute to psychological distress. More broadly, the results underscore the importance of considering attentional mechanisms in models of perfectionism and emotional disorders.
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7213445999