Gender Differences in Claimed Self-Handicapping: The Role of Group Status and Effort Prime

Abstract

Two studies are reported in which participants’ group status (group/individual) and cause of failure (pawn/origin) are used to predict self-handicapping. Relative to women, men’s tendency to engage in self-handicapping and related behaviors remains stable and high across conditions. In our studies, women are less likely to self-handicap in group situations and respond negatively when led to believe that their potential failure would be attributable to a lack of effort. Implications for academic, workplace, and sports environments are discussed.