Reviews underlying reliability, theoretical assumptions, and validity of several "fear of success" tests. Also examines the validity of the fear of success construct itself. Concludes that continued use of the label "fear of success" only reinforces belief in a scientifically unfounded concept of intrapsychic difference between…

Relationship between Type A/B behavior patterns and motive of success avoidance in women was investigated. Type B women are concerned with antagonizing others as a result of succeeding more than Type A women. Type B women may be realistically appraising achievement situations, especially the costs of success through competition. (Author/RD)

Female undergraduates performed tasks that examined the effect of particular situations on Fear of Success (FOS). No differences in FOS were found among three experimental groups, although performance behavior differed significantly. Results suggest the need for better measures of both the situationality of FOS and the phenomenon of FOS itself.…

Stereotypes about sex roles and achievement settings were investigated by examining stories written by college males and females. The characters of the stories, "John" and "Anne," were placed in either a neutral setting or in medical school. Anne was rated more feminine than John in the neutral setting but equally masculine as a medical student.…

An examination of 70 male college freshmen's stories written to a cue designed to elicit fear of success imagery revealed greater fear of success in students whose friends were not interested in college. These results may be due to fears of disapproval or rejection by such friends. (RL)

Reviews Horner's (1968) theory regarding the motivational dynamics underlying the performance of males and females, and contrasts it with later developments. Presents a model of fear of success and achievement motivation that accommodates previous research. Data are presented to support this model. (Author/BJV)

Fear of success is a dispositional form of anxiety that can have harmful effects on athletes' motivation and performance; however, empirical research on fear of success in sport has been limited. Zuckerman and Allison's (1976) Fear of Success Scale (FOSS) has been the most popular fear of success measure used in sport, yet it is laden with…

Threat emanating from financial markets may intimidate college students to some degree. In this article, the authors considered the influence of such intimidation on student financial market knowledge. They hypothesized a negative relationship between intimidation and market knowledge. An empirical study of over 150 undergraduate business school…

Fear of success in women is a pervasive phenomenon affecting women's career development. Women affected by this phenomenon are often unaware that they are afraid of succeeding. Identification of the factors that contribute to the fear of success in women's career development is important for educators and counselors wanting to assist women in…

Compared male and female physicians (N=104) on four variables presumed relevant to professional productivity. Results showed no significant differences between the sexes in marginality or role conflict. Male respondents obtained significantly higher fear of success scores, while women reported a significantly greater commitment to domestic duties.…

Investigated the motivational nature of the Motive to Avoid Success (MAS) in a sample of 105 fifth- to eighth-grade females who participated under noncompetitive and competitive conditions. Results did not substantiate the motivational nature of MAS. MAS did not predict performance in a competitive situation. (Author/JAC)

Clarifies the extent to which an individual's fear of success scores may vary with the presence or absence of occupational deviance and/or role overload in stimulus materials describing situations of female competitive success. Results suggest that fear of success is a misnomer for responses to women's role descriptions. (Author/JLF)

Studies on women compared with men in Iran (as an example of a fast-developing country) relating to achievement and vocational behavior showed results quite similar to those reported on American women. Iranian women emphasized external attribution of cause of success/failure, and were less sex discriminatory than men. (Author)

Offers a theoretical discussion of the impact a child's Oedipal experiences have on that child's concepts of succeeding and winning. Considers and discusses the most common situations in which clinical manifestations of fear of success are observed, including romantic relationships, work, and overtly competitive pursuits. (RL)

In two experiments employing female and male subjects, respectively, social reactions to "success" were manipulated in an attempt to assess the validity of Horner's Fear-of-Success (FOS) concept as a motivational construct. The use of a single-criterion, dichotomous scoring procedure on a fantasy-based measure of the construct produced…