Abstract The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between perfectionism, as a personality trait, and the brain structure. A total of 49 volunteers (23 women, 26 men) participated in this study by filling a Farsi version of the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale (FPANPS) and attending an MRI session. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) method was used to analyze the MRI data. The images were segmented to gray matter, white matter and cerebrospinal fluid. A template was produced by averaging segmented gray matters, and the images were normalized to be matched with the template. Then, a statistical model was used to find regions in the brain which had significant correlations with positive or negative perfectionism. The results demonstrated significant correlations between negative perfectionism with thalamus, and left posterior parietal cortex (precuneus) structures, where higher perfectionism score was statistically correlated with gray matter density. The results also showed that the assessment of any correlation for positive perfectionism needs larger sample size. Previous studies have shown that precuneus is activated by thinking about duties and obligations and it is also related to depression. On the other hand, thalamus has been found to be related to obsessive-compulsive disorder. The results may help to clear the neurological foundations of perfectionism and its relationship with other disorders.

Keywords: perfectionism, Voxel-based morphometry, magnetic resonance imaging, precuneus, thalamus

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