Defensive pessimism is a strategy used by people who are anxious about an upcoming event. They set unrealistically low expectations before going into a situation and take steps to avoid poor performance. Defensive pessimism involves over-preparation.

For example, someone preparing...

Self-handicapping is where an individual will create obstacles for themselves before an ability-evaluating event. If it turned out poorly, the obstacles became an excuse or explanation for the failure. If it turned out positive, the obstacles became conquered hurdles.

Self-ha...

When comparing defensive pessimists to anxious people who do not practice defensive pessimism, the defensive pessimists show these benefits:

• Their self-esteem and satisfaction increase over time.
• They perform better academically
• They form more supportive friendship net...

• Research found that defensive pessimists will do best when they can think through possible negative outcomes.
• Strategic optimists will do best when they avoid thinking about possible negative outcomes.

Pessimism can have positive effects. If you are an anxious person, try...

• Pessimists only expect bad things to happen. And this leads to increased anxiety and decreased perceived goal importance.
• Defensive pessimists tend to reflect about, or plan for, their performance. This leads to increased perceived goal importance, increased levels of e...