Perfectionism and work-family conflict: Self-esteem and self-efficacy as mediator

•Adaptive perfectionists perceive lower WFC than maladaptive and non-perfectionists.•Self-esteem and WFC self-efficacy are mediators of perfectionism and WFC.•Non-perfectionists had higher WFC through lower WFC self-efficacy.

Self-esteem and domain-specific self-efficacy are considered as mediators of perfectionism clusters and work-family conflict. Working adults with family obligations (N = 379) participated in the online study. Using cluster analysis and multicategorical multiple mediation analysis, perfectionism was found to be related to low work-family conflict. Specifically, adaptive perfectionism at work and home was related to lower work-family conflict relative to maladaptive perfectionism as mediated by both self-esteem and work-family conflict self-efficacy. Implications of bolstering self-esteem and work-family conflict self-efficacy are discussed.