Perfectionism, Self Compassion, Fear of Negative Evaluation and Dispositional Envy among Performing Artists

It’s needless to say how passionate people in the creative fields are about their respective projects. Yet, there is a reality beyond the glamour, behind the served dish. Incessant practice, guilt on the failure to be able to do so, self-criticism, trials and errors, crests -troughs of productivity, self-doubt, need for proper validation, insecurities, comparison stress and creative blockages are an active part of the lives of artists. Perfectionism has been unduly romanticised for years together but artists have been seen to suffer its ill effects. With stiff competition, harsh criticism and the pressure to create, it is hard to be compassionate towards oneself. This may even stimulate performance anxiety and envy. The research aims to study Perfectionism, Self-Compassion, Fear of Negative Evaluation and Dispositional Envy among Performing Artists, for the purpose of which a sample of 35 artists in the age range of 20-40 years was taken. Standardised measures of the aforementioned variables were administered to the respondents. Findings of the study revealed a significant positive relationship between rigid perfectionism and fear of negative evaluation, self-critical perfectionism and fear of negative evaluation, benign envy and rigid perfectionism and benign envy and self-critical perfectionism. A significant negative relationship was revealed between rigid perfectionism and self-compassion, self-critical perfectionism and self-compassion and fear of negative evaluation and self-compassion. With these findings, we can conclude that following one’s heart takes a toll and comes with responsibility too. There’s a need for programmes to help artists overcome these mental obstacles and enhance their productivity.