Preemptive effort downplaying : implications on performance.

This study looked into Preemptive Effort Downplaying (PED), a recently identified claimed self-handicapping strategy whereby handicappers publicly downplay their effort expenditure on test preparation before taking a test with the intention of managing social evaluations of the self. The study was conducted with 58 undergraduate students to investigate the implications of PED on performance. Participants’ general use of study strategies and self-regulation strategies were also measured to explore plausible relationships with the extent of PED and its implications on performance. Generally, results yielded no actual support for all the hypotheses but implications of suggestive trends and possible explanations were discussed. Limitations of the study and other interesting findings were also touched on.Bachelor of Art