Explaining a Model of Obsessive–Compulsive Symptom Severity Based on Perfectionism and Intolerance of Uncertainty, with Emphasis on the Mediating Role of Rumination Among Women Attending Psychological Clinics
Keywords:
obsessive–compulsive symptoms, perfectionism, intolerance of uncertainty, rumination, womenAbstract
The present study aimed to explain a model of obsessive–compulsive symptom severity based on perfectionism and intolerance of uncertainty, with emphasis on the mediating role of rumination among women attending psychological clinics. In terms of its nature, this study was descriptive–applied, and methodologically, it employed a correlational design based on path analysis. The statistical population consisted of all women attending psychological clinics in Bandar Abbas in 2025 who had been diagnosed with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) by a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist. The study sample was selected through convenience sampling. Accordingly, five active psychological clinics located in different areas of Bandar Abbas were selected, and 50 eligible women were recruited from each clinic, resulting in a total sample of 250 participants. The instruments included the Obsessive–Compulsive Inventory developed by Foa et al. (2002), the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale developed by Hewitt and Flett (1991), the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale developed by Freeston et al. (1994), and the Ruminative Responses Scale developed by Nolen-Hoeksema and Morrow (1991). The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS version 27 and path analysis in AMOS. The findings indicated that rumination played a significant mediating role in the relationship between perfectionism and obsessive–compulsive symptom severity, as well as in the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and obsessive–compulsive symptom severity (p < .01). These findings suggest that perfectionism and intolerance of uncertainty may exacerbate obsessive–compulsive symptoms among women attending psychological clinics through increased rumination, highlighting the need for further investigation of these mechanisms.
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