Perfectionism and Resistance to Peer Pressure Among Adolescent Girls: The Protective Role of Assertiveness
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12974/2313-1047.2026.13.03Keywords:
Resistance to peer pressure, Assertiveness, Perfectionism, Positive perfectionism, Negative perfectionism, AdolescentsAbstract
Adolescence is a developmental period during which peer influence becomes particularly salient, and the ability to resist peer pressure is an important factor in promoting adaptive decision-making and preventing risky behaviors. The present study aimed to examine the relationships between different dimensions of perfectionism and resistance to peer pressure and to investigate the moderating role of assertiveness in these relationships. The study employed a descriptive correlational design. Participants were 357 female students enrolled in the second cycle of secondary education in Bojnourd, Iran, who were selected through single-stage cluster sampling. Data were collected using the Resistance to Peer Influence Scale, the Assertion Inventory, and two measures of perfectionism, including the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale and the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and hierarchical multiple regression analyses. The results indicated that resistance to peer pressure was positively associated with assertiveness, positive perfectionism, and self-oriented perfectionism, whereas it was negatively associated with negative perfectionism and other-oriented perfectionism. The relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and resistance to peer pressure was not statistically significant. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that assertiveness significantly moderated the relationships between perfectionism dimensions and resistance to peer pressure. Specifically, assertiveness strengthened adolescents’ ability to resist peer pressure in the presence of perfectionistic tendencies, with the moderation models explaining between 21% and 37% of the variance in resistance to peer pressure. These findings highlight the importance of considering interpersonal skills, particularly assertiveness, as a protective factor that influences how perfectionistic tendencies are expressed in adolescents’ social functioning.
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