The Dark Side of the Transformative Self

The pursuit of growth has a dark side. The person who has a transformative self can too easily strive for growth in ways that are paradoxically counter to eudaimonic growth and that are harmful to the self and others. This chapter explores the dark side of the transformative self in four forms. First, perfectionism in its maladaptive forms involves impossible or otherwise unchecked ideals for perfection. Second, eudaimonic materialism values moral virtue and wisdom but veers toward moralism and intellectual self-adulation. Third, “wanting it all” aims for a well-rounded life but can manifest as a problem of overcommitment, for which cultural master narratives of success place women at particular risk. Fourth, in contrast, a never-ending search for meaning, or “ceaseless seeking,” involves an unrelenting pursuit of an idealistically true self or meaning in life and can manifest as a problem of undercommitment.