Please don’t stop the music! A new look at the performance anxiety of musicians with the model of excellencism and perfectionism

Musicians have normalized performance anxiety (PA) to be part of their musical career. Perfectionism has been proposed as a possible personality risk factor for PA. Although perfectionistic concerns have been consistently positively correlated to PA, results have been inconsistent for perfectionistic standards. This inconsistency is potentially attributable to the fact that past studies did not differentiate the pursuit of high standards and the pursuit of perfectionistic standards. In this study, we aimed to compare the levels of PA of students who pursue high standards (excellence) from those who pursue perfection with the model of excellencism and perfectionism. As a supplementary analysis, we have also investigated if different standards predicted different positive and negative affect levels. A total of 94 music students completed questionnaires on perfectionism, PA, and positive and negative affect. They were recruited through their music conservatory ( N = 69) and recruitment ads on Facebook ( N = 25). Results of multiple linear regression demonstrated that only perfectionistic standards were positively and significantly associated with cognitive state anxiety, overall score of PA, and negative affect. Overall, aiming for excellence rather than perfection seemed to help mitigate levels of PA and the negative affect felt by musicians.