Academic self-handicapping and achievement goals: A further examination

This study extends previous research on the relations among students' personal achievement goals, perceptions of the classroom goal structure, and reports of the use of self-handicapping strategies. Surveys, specific to the math domain, were given to 484 7th-grade students in nine middle schools. Personal performance-avoid goals positively predicted handicapping, whereas personal performance-approach goals did not. personal task. goals negatively predicted handicapping. Perceptions of a performance goal structure positively predicted handicapping, and perceptions of a task goal structure negatively predicted handicapping, independent of personal goals. Median splits used to examine multiple goal profiles revealed that students high in performance-avoid goals used handicapping more than did those low in performance-avoid pouts regardless of the level of task goals. Students low in performance-avoid goals and high in task goals handicapped less than those low in both gents. Level of performance-approach goals had little effect on the relation between task gents and handicapping. (C) 2001 Academic Press.