The objective of this study was to examine the effects of mother’s perfectionism and parenting
beliefs on her preschooler's social competence. The participants were 277 mothers residing in
Daejeon, Korea. Basic descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s α, t-test, ANOVA, and multiple regression
were used for statistical treatment. The results were as follows: First, a mother’s perfectionism and
parenting beliefs did not differ according to her educational level. One factor of perfectionism,
‘holding high standards’, alone showed significant difference between highschool graduates and
graduate school graduates, the latter’s scores being higher than the former’s. There were no
significant differences in preschooler's social competence by sex or age. However, a few sex and age
differences were found in sub-factors of social competence. Girls scored higher than boys on
‘showing affection’, and 5 year olds scored lower on ‘showing affection’ and higher on ‘leadership’
than 3 years olds. Second, a mother’s perfectionism and parenting beliefs were able to explain 22.8%
of variance in preschooler's social competence, the former showing more predictive power than the
latter. Each of the two factors of maternal perfectionism affected five factors of preschooler’s social
competence in a different manner. ‘Holding high standards’ of perfectionism positively influenced
preschooler’s social competence factors such as ‘social capability’, ‘leadership’, and ‘showing
affection’, whereas maternal ‘fear of failure’ had a negative impact on ‘showing affection’,
‘disturbing’(reversed), and ‘instability’(reversed). These results were discussed in relation with
changes in social atmosphere and value systems, changes in child-rearing behaviors, or the construct
and concept of perfectionism itself, It was suggested that these results be utilized in developing
parent education programs for preschoolers lacking social competence.