Excellent student syndrome – what it is and how it manifests itself
Often, children who study flawlessly at school, win prizes at olympiads, and win medals at competitions, are subject to the “excellent student syndrome”, which is a direct or indirect payment for success. In psychology, this syndrome borders on perfectionism, but has its own special features that betray its presence. Therefore, it is quite possible to diagnose yourself by choosing the treatment on an individual basis.
Key Features of the Excellence Syndrome
Having understood the terminology, it will not be difficult for any person to understand whether he is prone to the syndrome of an excellent student. Such a phenomenon as a set of psychological characteristics of a person, due to the presence of which he shows a desire to achieve the best result, is called the syndrome of an excellent student. At the same time, for a person, the priority is to achieve success and encouragement, and not the process and benefit.
The syndrome can affect both children and adults. In childhood, the deviation occurs unconsciously, while in the older group of people there is the possibility of awareness of what is happening. Symptoms often include symptoms such as:
• variability of self-esteem, strongly dependent on outsiders’ opinions;
• comparing your results with the successes of others;
• the presence of a constant fear of making a mistake, and therefore the refusal to implement something new;
• a constant desire to please the desires of other people;
• emergence of envy at the best result of contenders.
Also, the tendency to develop depression after making a mistake is a clear indication of the development of the syndrome. At the same time, fear of making mistakes, fear of the opinions of others and fear of criticism are considered key aspects of the disorder. Along the way, people with an excellent student syndrome live with other people’s values, ideals, sometimes without realizing it themselves.
Typical mistakes indicating the onset of the syndrome
Often, the syndrome of an excellent student in children and adolescents develops as a result of pressure from adults and their use of phrases that can send a child on the path of an excellent student. The dialogue will certainly include the following questions:
• “How was your day?” instead of “How are you?”;
• “Did the others make it?”
Also, the person himself can contribute to the formation of the disorder through incorrect thinking. Then such phrases as “I’m afraid to forget to say something during the speech” or “I’m worried that I won’t be able to do something according to the planned scenario” will be clearly traced.
If it is not possible to immediately track the origin of the problem, then it is advisable to resort to checking yourself by passing tests, questionnaires devoted to a comprehensive assessment of personality traits:
• on the Dembo – Rubinshtein self-assessment scale;
• according to the standardized multifactorial method of studying the personality of L.N. Sobchik ;
• armed with a multidimensional Hewitt -Flett perfectionism scale .
In the event that a problem or disturbing symptoms are detected, it is better to immediately take effective measures to prevent the situation from aggravating.
Ways to get rid of the excellent student syndrome
Although susceptibility to this personality disorder is a common problem, it is possible to get rid of it on your own with a certain amount of effort.
1. Awareness of the problem (accepting the fact that the presence of a syndrome is a vulnerability in a person’s characteristics is the first step towards getting rid of the problem).
2. A closer look around (trying to understand your own environment, which forms the wrong views, allows you to eliminate from the circle of friends, acquaintances who are toxic people who encourage the appearance of the syndrome).
3. Give yourself permission to play pranks (due to the fact that the problem comes from childhood, it is important for a person of any age to allow himself to be imperfect, and give himself the freedom to play pranks from the heart).
4. Eliminate the habit of comparing yourself with other people (you should switch the focus from the result to the process, prioritizing your own needs, not looking back at the achievements of others).
5. Passing a special online program (Psychic Self-Regulation will help you quickly improve your own state of mind, a program that, after completing it in 6 weeks, will be able to forget about the presence of the excellent student syndrome in your life).
6. Familiarization with narrowly focused books (deep immersion in the topic can be achieved by reading the works of Ruby Wax “Being yourself”, Erich Fromm “Man for himself”).
In order to prevent the development of the syndrome from childhood, it is important for parents to praise their own child, paying attention to the ability to do something on their own, and not to receive high marks for the actions done. The manifestation of love, benevolence will become good companions on the way to the formation of a healthy personality of a growing child.