Perfectionism and attitudes toward doping in sport: a systematic review
Abstract
Introduction: The development of favorable attitudes towards doping has made it possible to establish that there are personal and psychosocial factors that can lead an athlete to act in an unsportsmanlike manner. Objective: Analyze the existing evidence on the relationship between perfectionism in sport and attitudes towards doping in athletes of different levels of competition. Method: A systematic review of the literature was conducted, using the methodological guidelines recommended in the PRISMA declaration as a reference. The databases reviewed were Scopus, SPORTDiscus, and PubMed. Results: A total of n = 8 articles were included for qualitative analysis. Once the studies were analyzed, n = 3 (37.5% of the studies) identified that Perfectionist Concerns (PP) are the dimension that is most closely related to attitudes towards doping. Conclusion: The systematic review showed that perfectionism, particularly in its maladaptive dimension (PP), is consistently associated with more favorable attitudes toward doping in sports contexts. In contrast, adaptive perfectionism showed less consistent relationships and, in some cases, a protective effect against doping attitudes. These findings, modulated by factors such as social pressure and the type of sport, provide relevant information to guide preventive strategies and educational programs aimed at reducing predisposition.
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References
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