Validity of DAS perfectionism and need for approval in relation to the five-factor model of personality

This study examined the validity of the perfectionism and need for approval scales of the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS; Weissman & Beck, 1978) by locating these measures within a comprehensive framework of personality, provided by the revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R; Costa & McCrae, 1992), in a clinical sample (N 1⁄4 132). The results indicated that: (1) DAS perfectionism reflects the self-critical aspects of the broader perfectionism construct rather than the active achievement striving aspects; (2) DAS need for approval generally lacks an association with positive interpersonal traits and shares much in common with DAS perfectionism; and (3) with shared variance between the perfectionism and need for approval scales removed, each scale more clearly relates to negative (perfectionism) and positive (need for approval) interpersonal content, respectively. 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.