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ego
You sabotage your own work to protect your ego.
A 1978 study showed that students would rather choose a drug that hinders their performance than risk failing without an excuse.
When people doubt their ability to succeed, they create obstacles to explain away a potential failure. By blaming the handicap, you keep your perceived competence intact in your own mind, regardless of the actual result.
You choose a built-in excuse over the possibility of a hard truth.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Jones and Berglas, 1978
- What the check found
- The study exists and is seminal in psychology. Although the provided reference material lacks the quote, this is a well-established scientific finding in psychological literature.
- Confidence
- Solid, with limits
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.