Question

Victor never studies for his exams. That way, if he scores well, it's all the more impressive, and if he scores poorly, it has no effect on his self-esteem because he simply assumes that he would have done well had he really tried. Victor's reasoning and behavior illustrate:

a) Self-fulfilling prophecy
b) Self-determination theory
c) Self-serving bias
d) Self-handicapping

Answer 1

Victor's behavior of not studying to protect his self-esteem in case of failure is an example of self-handicapping, which is a psychological strategy aimed at avoiding effort to prevent damage to self-esteem.

Step-by-step explanation:

Victor's reasoning and behavior illustrate the concept of self-handicapping. This psychological strategy is used by individuals to avoid effort in the hopes of keeping potential failure from hurting self-esteem. If Victor succeeds without studying, he can attribute this success to his inherent abilities. If he fails, he can blame it on the lack of effort rather than his abilities, thus protecting his self-esteem.

The act of not studying serves as his handicap, and his behavior is not an example of self-fulfilling prophecy, which would be altering his behavior to make a held belief come true, nor is it self-serving bias, where he would attribute his success or failure to internal or external factors in a way that favors his self-image after the outcome is known. While self-determination theory does consider internal and external motivations, it doesn't apply to intentional self-sabotage or protecting one's self-esteem in this manner.