Individual Differences in Academic Identity and Self- Handicapping in Undergraduate College Students

A relationship exists between ego-identity development and academic achievement. Adolescent and young adult students are faced with the need to choose the values, goals and beliefs that will define their adult lives. One set of important choices in this period of life is centered on academics. Undergraduates (N=318) completed self-reports of self-handicapping behaviors as well as a measure of academic identity status. Results indicate that adolescent and young adults who have a developed sense of academic identity are less likely to adopt self-handicapping skills in academic settings, whereas students with a less well-developed academic identity, in particular those who have not made a commitment to academic goals and values, are likely to adopt self-handicapping strategies.