Children and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale: Validation in a Portuguese Adolescent Sample

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Child and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale (CAPS). Method: 971 Portuguese high school students (572 girls and 399 boys) answered the CAPS. The test-retest reliability was obtained with 206 participants from the total sample. Results: Internal consistency (α=.809) and test-retest reliability (r=.691) were satisfactory. Main components of factorial analysis yielded two factors, accounting for 41.44% of the total variance. Factor structure was similar to the original version. Factors were labelled as "Socially Prescribed Perfectionism" and "Self-Oriented Perfectionism". Discussion: The Portuguese version of the CAPS is a valid and useful instrument for the evaluation of perfectionism among Portuguese adolescents.