Self-handicapping refers to the process whereby people proactively plan excuses for future mistakes. The interpersonal motivation to self-handicap lies in
clouding any evaluation of ability, whilst the intrapersonal motivation is the protection of self-esteem. On the surface, self-handicapping represents somewhat health ego-centrism, but if used continually, pathological internalisation is a
possibility. This thesis investigated some of the assumptions held for self-handicapping by exploring how a stratified random sample of young people aged
between 10 and 16, self-handicapped when faced with an evaluative threat within the physical domain.