Academic Self-Efficacy and Self-Handicapping: Are they Influenced by Self-Regulated Learning?

Self-handicapping strategies become a life pattern in many low achieving students in an attempt to link their poor academic performance to sources other than one's ability factors. Frequent use of these strategies leads to decrement in self-efficacy related to academic competence as less and less time is devoted to scholastic activities. With the view that introducing self-regulatory patterns into the daily schedules of the students would decrease the faulty patterns of learning, this study compared two groups of seventh graders. The treatment group was provided with dual component self-regulatory strategies training including motivational and cognitive strategies, while the control group was exposed to only traditional classroom teaching methodology. ANCOVA results indicate a significant increase in the academic self-efficacy among the treatment group students at post-training. No significant shift was found in academic self-handicapping strategies used in the treatment group. However, during the intervention period there was a significant increase in the use of academic self-handicapping strategies by control group students. Content analysis of responses to open-ended probes indicate an increase in perceived academic self-efficacy and a decrement in academic self-handicapping at post-training stage.