title: Trait self-esteem and claimed self-handicapping motives in sports situations.
abstract: We examined the relationship between physical self-esteem and claimed self-handicapping among athletes by taking motives into consideration. In Study 1, 99 athletes were asked to report their tendency to engage in claimed self-handicapping for self-protective and self-enhancement motives (trait measures). Low self-esteem athletes reported a higher tendency to engage in claimed self-handicapping for these two motives compared with high self-esteem athletes. Neither low nor high self-esteem athletes reported a preference for one motive over the other. In Study 2, 107 athletes participated in a test that was ostensibly designed to assess high physical abilities - and thus to encourage self-handicapping for self-enhancement motives (success-meaningful condition) - or to assess low physical abilities, and thus to encourage self-handicapping for self-protective motives (failure-meaningful condition). Before starting the test, athletes were given the opportunity to claim handicaps that could impair their performance. Low self-esteem athletes claimed more handicaps than high self-esteem athletes in both conditions. Findings suggest that low physical self-esteem athletes engage more in claimed handicapping regardless of motives, relative to high physical self-esteem athletes.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Socio-Psychologie et Management du Sport, Department of Psychology, University of Burgundy, France. lucie.finez@u-bourgogne.fr
authors.forename: Lucie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Finez
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Berjot
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rosnet
authors.forename: Christena
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cleveland
authors.forename: Dianne M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Tice
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D056352:Athletes / Q000523:psychology; D003163:Competitive Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000523:psychology*; D011908:Rationalization; D012649:Self Concept; D013177:Sports / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult