Fear of failure is ‘an avoidance-based motive disposition in the achievement domain’ (Elliot & Thrash, 2004, p. 958). That is, this construct refers to as the motive to avoid failure in evaluative situations (Atkinson, 1957; McClelland, Atkinson, Clark, & Lowell, 1953; Sagar & Stoeber, 2009). This construct thus is closely related to one’s goal orientation and motivation (Covington, 2000; Martin, 2010). It has been wisely agreed that fear of failure is not a unidimensional construct but a multidimensional construct (Conroy, Willow, & Metzler, 2002). Many researchers have developed a scale to measure such multidimensional nature of fear of failure construct (see, e.g., Houston and Kelly (1987)’s fear of failure scales; Conroy et al. (2002)’s
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This construct serves as a key driver for one’s behaviors and orientations (Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013; Conroy & Elliot, 2004; Elliot & Covington, 2001; Martin & Marsh, 2003). On the other hand, many studies on the fear of failure have also focused on emotional attributes. These studies thus view the fear of failure as feelings of shame and irrational anxiety about failing to measure up to the standards and goals set by oneself or others (McGregor & Elliot, 2005; Passer, 1983; Sagar & Stoeber, …show more content…
Chen et al (2009) argued that the major antecedent of self-handicapping was fear of failure, due in part to the fact that fear of failure will lead an individual to adopt a self-handicapping strategy to avoid a decrease in personal self-esteem. It is logical to expect and find a positive relationship between fear of failure and self-handicapping. In fact, Elliot and Church (2003) reported a positive relationship between fear of failure and self-handicapping. Much research suggests that students who fear failure are likely to utilize self-handicapping that serve to perpetuate failure.
♣ Learned helplessness (LH)
Learned helplessness refers to “a personal perception that s/he has no control over the situation.” Literature describes learned helpless as a situation that students accept failure, giving up to the point of not even trying to avoid failure (Covington, 1992; Martin & Marsh, 2003). It is thus argued that fear of failure is closely linked to learned helplessness.
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This construct serves as a key driver for one’s behaviors and orientations (Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013; Conroy & Elliot, 2004; Elliot & Covington, 2001; Martin & Marsh, 2003). On the other hand, many studies on the fear of failure have also focused on emotional attributes. These studies thus view the fear of failure as feelings of shame and irrational anxiety about failing to measure up to the standards and goals set by oneself or others (McGregor & Elliot, 2005; Passer, 1983; Sagar & Stoeber, …show more content…
Chen et al (2009) argued that the major antecedent of self-handicapping was fear of failure, due in part to the fact that fear of failure will lead an individual to adopt a self-handicapping strategy to avoid a decrease in personal self-esteem. It is logical to expect and find a positive relationship between fear of failure and self-handicapping. In fact, Elliot and Church (2003) reported a positive relationship between fear of failure and self-handicapping. Much research suggests that students who fear failure are likely to utilize self-handicapping that serve to perpetuate failure.
♣ Learned helplessness (LH)
Learned helplessness refers to “a personal perception that s/he has no control over the situation.” Literature describes learned helpless as a situation that students accept failure, giving up to the point of not even trying to avoid failure (Covington, 1992; Martin & Marsh, 2003). It is thus argued that fear of failure is closely linked to learned helplessness.
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