Self-handicapping
Creating an obstacle to failure in advance, so you have an excuse ready.
What it means
A self-protective strategy in which people erect impediments to their own performance — withdrawing effort, procrastinating, drinking, or merely claiming an obstacle — so that failure can be blamed on the handicap rather than on lack of ability. The maneuver works through attribution: with a ready external excuse, poor results no longer threaten one's self-image, and unexpected success looks all the more impressive. It is most likely when self-esteem is contingent on the outcome and the person is uncertain they can succeed. Behavioral handicaps actually harm performance, whereas claimed handicaps merely furnish a verbal alibi. Chronic self-handicapping predicts worse long-term achievement, health, and adjustment.
Examples
A student who fears a hard exam stays out late the night before, so a low grade can be attributed to fatigue rather than inability.
The night before a big pitch, a manager mentions loudly that she is fighting a cold. If it flops, blame the illness; if it lands, she pulled it off while ill.
A club tennis player skips practice all month before the tournament, then says so at the net — a loss proves nothing about his talent, a win makes him a natural.
First described in Berglas & Jones (1978).