Developmental trajectories of children’s academic self-handicapping: role of academic self-efficacy and outcomes in mathematics achievement

The present study examined the developmental trajectories of children’s academic self-handicapping and the role of academic self-efficacy. A total of 1285 children (770 boys; M T1age = 9.47 ± 0.59) were assessed four times from the 3rd to 6th grades. The overall trajectory followed a quadratic curvilinear pattern, characterized by an initial increase from Grade 3 to Grade 4 followed by a gradual decline through Grade 6. Three distinct trajectories were identified: the low increase-decrease group (48.9%), the moderate slowly-decreasing group (40.0%), and the high quickly-decreasing group (11.1%). Academic self-efficacy significantly predicted the initial level of academic self-handicapping and increased the likelihood of belonging to the low increase-decrease group. Moreover, significant group differences were found in Grade 6 mathematics achievement after controlling for Grade 3 mathematics achievement, with the low increase-decrease group outperforming the moderate slowly-decreasing group. These findings highlight the heterogeneous developmental patterns of academic self-handicapping and underscore academic self-efficacy as a protective factor, providing educators with prospective indicators for identifying at-risk children and informing early intervention efforts.