Introduction

We all have attended school at some time in our life, and probably experienced the anxiety and fear of failure among our peers or just the fear of failing ourselves. The fear of failure is prevalent in the school atmosphere, whether you are an athlete, student, or even a teacher.

The term fear of failure can be most commonly defined as the likelihood of anticipating embarrassment upon failing (Hernández, Moreno-Murica, and Espín). Knowing this, FF can fit into each one of the previously stated titles because they each have their own definition of succeeding. However, there are ways to deal with this anxiety and failure and can be described in one word, coping. Coping can be generally defined as the process of managing external and/or internal conflicts (Folkman and Lazarus qtd. In Neff, Hsieh, and Dejitterat).

In the following pages, we will explore the effects FF has on students, athletes, and teachers and explore the similar yet different coping strategies that are used among them.

The Neurological Effects of Fear on Students

By knowing the neurological effects of fear we can then incorporate strategies to sustain negative thoughts among students. Fear of failure has the ability to affect the cognitive process in the brain. When a student is in a state of fear as if they are not on the same intelligence level as their peers, they tend to interpret situations differently. This may lead the student in taking an uplifting comment or actions by others in a negative way because he or she is overwhelmed with fear and anxiety.

This cognitive process can be categorized into fixed and growth mindsets. Students with fixed mindsets tend to fixate themselves on having a certain amount of intelligence, personality, and moral character, this is a limiting factor in their learning capacity of new information (Dweck qtd. In Bledsoe and Baskin). According to T. Scott Bledsoe and Janice J. Baskin, students that have fixed mindsets tend to “make low grades on tests; they make react with fear-based self-talk. They may internalize blame (‘I knew it. This proves I’m a failure’) or fault others (‘The professor really had it in for me’) without being able to realistically assess the situation…”(35).

Fixed mindsets can cloud students’ cognitive processing by causing them to fear situations that challenge their intelligence and overall performance capabilities (Bledsoe and Baskin). This can cause students to avoid challenging learning opportunities, which then plays a role in their overall academic improvement. However, students with growth mindsets tend to be the exact opposite. They are open to improvement and facing the fear of failing.

Teachers can help fixed-minded students enter a growth mindset by incorporating techniques and strategies on how to improve the area the student is lacking. When a student is having negative thoughts about their grade on a particular assignment, the teacher can identify problem areas and determine future learning practices to be better prepared for future assessments (Bledsoe and Baskin). Accordingly, the student will then feel confident in his or her’s academic capabilities and be motivated to incorporate better study habits for the next challenge. By establishing which mindset a student has, the answer of how to help becomes clearer.

Coping Strategies for Students

Determining the mindsets of students and how fear of failure can affect their brains, we are now better equipped to incorporate coping strategies and techniques in the classroom. Students’ coping strategies can be represented in three categories: Problem-focused, Avoidance orientated, and Emoting-focused.

When taking the problem-focused approach, students focus on changing a stressful situation into a more comfortable circumstance by taking action in directly removing the stressor, planning ahead, or reducing the outside activities to focus on the problem at hand (Neff, Hsieh, and Dejitterat 278). Students taking this approach tend to face the problem or stressor head-on. For example, if a student has an upcoming project due soon they would take the problem-focused approach so that the project gets done on time. This can be presented as an appropriate way to cope with the fear of failing.

However, the direct opposite of this approach would be the Avoidance-oriented process. When a student captivates on not taking the action entirely because of the fear of failing. The authors provide examples by stating, “… may include denying the reality of a situation, giving up, or mentally disengaging through excessive sleep or intoxicants” (Neff, Hsieh, and Dejitterat 278). The Avoidance-orientated way of dealing with stress, failure, or any kind of setback is the worst way a student could possibly cope. What makes this approach so popular is that it’s the easiest way out of an uncomfortable or intimidating situation.

The third category presented, emotion-focused can be described as changing the way you might interpret a situation to alter a reaction. Students may seek emotional support, take a different approach to a situation, or accept a situation with calmness (Neff, Hsieh, and Dejitterat 278). The emotion-focused approach can be seen as an appropriate way of coping because changing the way a student might interpret a situation and how to handle it properly will most commonly calm the fear or stress of a situation. These three different coping strategies can be universally applied to, not just students but everyone.

Fear of Failure Among Teachers

When thinking about the fear of failure most people think of students or athletes, but what about teachers? Educators face the constant battle of fearing failure almost daily. Having a sense of being responsible for a student’s learning can be stressful and full of anxiety. When a lesson plan fails or doesn’t grab the attention of the student body well, teachers tend to feel a sense of doubt in their teaching skills. This can lead to a lack of motivation and preparedness for upcoming lessons.

Establishing a professional relationship with your student can be essential for increasing their comprehension of a topic. Thus, teachers have difficulty, not individualizing failure because the job can and will get personal (Smith qtd. In Will). This fear of failure is present in most educators today because when a student fails the teacher feels like they have to.

Relating back to a previously stated argument, Sarah Lamphier elaborates on incorporating a growth mindset in the classroom. She states from a personal experience, “Several months ago I was teaching a lesson on fraction division when my department chair unexpectedly entered the classroom; I actually started stumbling over my words, I could feel my heartbreak quicken and palms get sweaty” (“As Teacher’s, Do we fear failure?” par. 4). Lamphier experienced a sense of anxiety and fear that she would fail in front of her colleagues. Although this seems normal to understand, however, why don’t we correlate the feeling of failure in front of our peers with teachers. This is shown in Lamphier’s experience, “I can laugh at this story now, but my work as an instructional coach has shown me it is an experience that resonates deeply with many teachers. Since we rarely practice our craft in front of colleagues, it’s unsettling to share what goes on in our classroom with other adults. For the most part, the profession of teaching does not have a culture of making our work public for the sake of growth” (“As Teachers, Do We Fear failure?” par. 4).

Now having an understanding of the fear of failure among teachers from Lamphier’s experiences, we can conclude that teachers do indeed face the fear of failure as a student or athlete would.

Teachers’ Coping Techniques

As seen now, teachers do indeed face the fear of failure but how do they overcome it? Educators’ coping techniques are uniquely represented through a variety of experiences. Reframing is a commonly used coping technique that involves framing a situation, you are dreading, into a more comfortable experience (Peppercorn). This technique is most commonly seen in performances or presentations in front of people.

Sarah Wessling uses this technique when she taught a high school English lesson in front of camera crews from the Teaching Channel. Her lesson ends up failing short, with Wessling struggling to keep the students on task while trying to teach a complex concept (Will). Before the next group of students attend her class, she reframes her thoughts and comes out on the other side teaching the next group more effectively while keeping the students’ attention (Will). This is shown to be a proficient way of gathering one’s thoughts to do better next time.

Once teacher’s accept their mistakes and continue to teach their students is when learning takes place, “… ‘Pirates don’t yell at the wind, they don’t curse the wind–they read the wind and they shift their sails and go’, he said. ‘The wind of our classroom is that student and response’” (Burgess qtd. In Will). This mixture of unique experiences overcoming fear of failure and simple coping techniques can be universally taken advantage of by everyone.

Fear of Failure in Athletes

Although students and teachers face the fear of failure, athletes have a harder environment to perform, in which judgment is constantly around. Fear of failure can be most commonly applied to athletes. The Performance Failure Appraisal Inventory (PFAI) model, that has been academically studied, identifies five different fears of failure, “… (a) fear of experiencing shame and embarrassment, (b) fear of devaluing one’s self-estimate, © fear of having an uncertain future, (d) fear of important others losing interest, and (e) fear of upsetting important others” (Conroy et al. qtd in Correia and Rosado 76).

We can diagnose any one athlete of having one of these five fears of failure because the reaction to failure is different by person. Fear of failure can be inspected as a person’s reaction to his or her environment rather than framing it as a trait or state (Correia and Rosado). Lazarus cognitive-motivational-relational theory supports this by stating, “… Its premise is that every event in our lives is constantly being evaluated with respect to its significance for our well-being. The function of emotion is to facilitate adaptation, but if the appraisal is unrealistic, it can do the opposite” (233).

An athlete’s emotional appraisal can predict their reaction to such events. For example, if an athlete is over thinking each step they make, they are bound to fail. However, reframing their cognitive thinking process can change their reaction to failure. Thus, an athletes’ environment can be justified as more inclined for fear of failure because they are evaluated on their performance thoroughly.

Athletes’ Coping Strategies

Although different athletes have different appraisals and their specific interactions with the environment, their coping strategies can be similar. Shame-coping mechanisms can be directly correlated with fear of failure. Because shame can be a result of fear of failure, those who experience social isolation are also experiencing shame (Elison and Partridge). Negative Shame-coping techniques can be practiced with fear of failure as such: Attack Self, Withdrawal, Attack Other, and Avoidance (Elson and Partridge).

As mentioned previously shame is one of the five different fears of failure. However, the previous stated coping strategies for both students and teachers can be universally applied to athletes as well. Athletes can take advantage of the emotion-focused coping technique by seeking emotional support or guidance on how to enhance their skills. As well as reframing their mindset, they can take great advantage of this technique by altering their negative thoughts of an outcome to positive. Thus, shame influence coping styles along with common styles can be seen in athletes who experience fear of failure.

Conclusion

Now having looked in detail about the different effects of FF and the similar yet different coping styles each one person may face, we can conclude that fear of failure is prevalent in the school environment. Whether that be in higher education or high school, fear of failure is always seen clearly through students, teachers, and athletes.

Knowing this, we as students can take advantage of emotion-focused or problem-focused coping styles to better prepare ourselves for the many challenges throughout our career. While educators can reframe their way of presenting new information to better keep students involved and teach not only themselves but students as well. Athletes can take advantage of these by focusing on how fear of failure personally affects them and how properly deal with shame-based fear of failure that comes along with competing.

Works Cited

Bledsoe, T. Scott, and Janice J. Baskin. “Recognizing Student Fear: The Elephant in the Classroom.” College Teaching, vol. 62, no. 1, Winter 2014, pp. 32-41. https://doi.org/10.1080⁄87567555.2013.831022.

Correia, Marco Estêvão, and António Rosado. “Fear of Failure and Anxiety in Sport.” Análise Psicológica, vol. 36, no. 1, Mar. 2018, pp. 75-86. https://doi.org/10.14417/ap.1193.

Ellison, Jeff, and Julie A. Partridge. “Relationships between Shame-Coping, Fear of Failure, and Perfectionism in College Athletes.” Journal of Sport Behavior, vol. 35, no. 1, Mar. 2012, pp. 19-39.

Huéscar Hernández, Elisa, et al. “Teachers’ Interpersonal Styles and Fear of Failure from the Perspective of Physical Education Students.” PLoS ONE, vol. 15, no. 6, June 2020, pp. 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0235011.

Lamphier, Sarah. “As Teachers, Do We Fear Failure?” Center for STEM Education, stemeducation.nd.edu/blog/blog-posts/as-teachers-do-we-fear-failure.

Lazarus, Richard S. “How Emotions Influence Performance in Competitive Sports.” Sport Psychologist, vol. 14, no. 3, Sept. 2000, p. 229. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.14.3.229.

Neff, Kristin D., et al. “Self-Compassion, Achievement Goals, and Coping with Academic Failure.” Self & Identity, vol. 4, no. 3, July 2005, pp. 263-87. https://doi.org/10.1080⁄13576500444000317.

Peppercorn, Susan, et al. “How to Overcome Your Fear of Failure.” Harvard Business Review, 17 Sept. 2021, hbr.org/2018/12/how-to-overcome-your-fear-of-failure.

Will, Madeline. “How Can Teachers Bounce Back from Failure?” TopSchoolJobs, 4 Sept. 2019, www.topschooljobs.org/article/how-can-teachers-bounce-back-from-failure-.

Will, Tim. “As Teachers, Do We Fear Failure?” Center for STEM Education, stemeducation.nd.edu/blog/blog-posts/as-teachers-do-we-fear-failure.