Fear is one of the very first and core emotions that we grow up with. Everyone must have feared cockroaches, lizards, dogs or any situation. The most common being fear of failing something really important to us, this could be an exam, a competition, a proposal, a job interview, etc. Has anyone ever wondered what goes through their body when they are under fear? Or why do they get palpitations, breathlessness, a racing heart, and anxious thoughts when feeling fear? This article will surely help you better understand what exactly fear is.
Well, let’s learn about Kunal, who is a professional at an IT firm and describes himself as a perfectionist at everything, be it home, work, appointments, or project deadlines. Kunal spends most of his time thinking about what seniors think about the work and how the project can be made in consideration of expectations set by the company, which leads to anxiety of not meeting the expectations, an irritable mood, and ultimately leads to chain smoking. There is no creativity or individuality in his work and projects, as he is always occupied with “not being perfect”. This is an example of fear of failure, which can lead to a maladaptive way of life.
Defining Fear of Failure: A Psychological Perspective
Fear of failure (FF) is an avoidance motive based on anticipated shame and humiliation associated with failure, according to the achievement motivation literature (Atkinson, 1957). According to more recent research, fear of failure is defined as a propensity to perceive danger and experience anxiety in circumstances when failure is a possibility. From a cognitive-motivational-relational standpoint, people who have come to associate failure with unpleasant outcomes may perceive it as a threat.
Fear of Failure is also known as “Actychiphobia”, which is characterised by irrational and persistent fear of failing, while the DSM-5 do not share a nomenclature for it, but it can be classified under Specific Phobia. The word Actychiphobia comes from the Greek word where “Atych” means misfortune. This extreme feeling of failing might arise at any time.
However, it has been demonstrated that children who are routinely held to extremely high standards or who receive frequent criticism for any flaws in their work are more likely to develop a fear of failing or of not being good enough to meet the expectations. This was confirmed by a 2014 British Psychological Society study that asked 1,000 college and high school students about their study habits and learning goals.
Read More: Fear of Failure and the Psychology of Cheating: Understanding the Shame Loop
Origins of Atychiphobia: Where Does It Begin?
Atychiphobia may be brought on by “demeaning parents or family members, traumatic and/or embarrassing events that arise from minor failure early in life, or an individual experiencing a significant failure and being ill-equipped to effectively cope with it,” according to research from Penn State University (2015). Teevan (1983) showed that mothers who penalise failure but react indifferently to success have children who have a strong fear of failing. Research supports that fear of failure may be linked to feelings of shame.
A higher-order general FF has been connected to five distinct outcomes of failure, including:
(a) feeling ashamed and embarrassed
(b) undervaluing oneself
(c) facing an unclear future
(d) losing the interest of significant others
(e) offending significant others
What Research Says About Fear of Failure
1. Early Childhood Experiences and Fear Conditioning
Elliot and Thrash’s latest findings are the most relevant to the current investigation (2004). Their study shows how love withdrawal from a mother is linked to feelings of fear of failure in a child. Mothers with a high fear of failure were more likely to withhold affection from their children when they made mistakes or failed, which increased the child’s dread of failing. Consequently, fear of failure appears to stem from affiliation issues, particularly those related to parent-child interactions, even if it is a competence-based motive.
2. Perfectionism: The Hidden Driver of Fear
Cognitive theorists believe that the underlying core characteristic of a perfectionist is “fear of failure”. They have formulated three types of perfectionism that are:
- Other-oriented perfectionism(OOP): unrealistic expectations from others that they will be flawless in their performance. Cognitive theorists believe it to be high performing perfectionism as people are engaged in evaluating others’ performance over their own. As a result, OOP includes interpersonal frustrations (such as loneliness and cynicism; Burns, 1983; Hollender, 1965), narcissism, mistrust, animosity, and blame (Hewitt & Flett, 1991b).
- Socially prescribed perfectionism(SPP): individuals feel constrained by expectations of being quintessential from significant others (Hewitt & Flett, 1991b). This has been linked to feelings of suicidal ideation, depression, anxiety and maladaptive thought processes. According to recent research, those who internalise SPP criteria do so out of a desire to avoid failing and out of a fear of receiving a poor grade (Neumeister, 2004).
- Self-Oriented Perfectionism(SOP): entails an inclination to measure oneself to unreasonable standards and to critically evaluate and analyse one’s actions due to a desire to achieve perfection and prevent failure (Hewitt & Flett, 1991b).SOP is linked with depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, eating disorders, and burnout. (Hewitt & Flett, 1991-1997).
All three types of perfectionism have at least some harmful traits, according to mounting data. Therefore, it might be beneficial to comprehend the degree to which different cognitions are linked to each type of perfectionism. Some of the perfectionists’ maladaptive thoughts are probably related to the unpleasant parts of failing because of their sensitivity to and obsession with avoiding failure.
3. The Role of Competitive Environments in Schools
Schools focus on building competitiveness in children in terms of grades as well as competitive games like sports. Teachers tend to push the achievers towards competitions and are taught from the very beginning to avoid failure at any cost. This leads to feelings of personal dissatisfaction in kids when faced with failures. (Haimovitz & Dweck, 2016). The pressure to meet their teachers’ expectations can lead to detrimental effects. Researchers have found that athletes and students tend to avoid tasks that are difficult due to elevated feelings of fear of failure. (Sagar et al., 2007; Schwinger et al., 2022).
4. Fear of Failure: A Double-Edged Motivation
Students may experience a downward trajectory as a result of these failure-related repercussions, losing motivation and effort. This ultimately results in more failures and lower performance. Lucas et al. (2015 have postulated that people tend to leave the tasks at the last moment due to elevated levels of fear of failure. We have till now, viewed the negative implications of fear of failure. But some research has also shed light on its benefits.
According to studies Ellis et al., 2014; Palominos et al., 2022), students who fail are more likely to grow from their errors and do better on subsequent assignments.
This implies that failure can serve as a valuable teaching tool by revealing what didn’t work and what could be done better. According to some research, people who can redefine failure show incredible fortitude in the face of setbacks and accomplish their objectives. One such study conducted by Cox(2009) shows that fear of failure has been found to motivate individuals and drive them to try again. This has also been linked to elevated artistry and imagination. (Blankschaen, 2013; Dauten & O’Donnell, 2013). In conclusion, people feeling fear of failure tend to come up with novel thoughts and ideas.
Conclusion
Fear of failure is never felt towards the task, but the different perspectives we draw around it. Although fear of failure could be a result of childhood overexpectation, competitive environment or simply a thought of being “quintessential”, it also acts as a protective shield supporting personal growth. However, research suggests that failure is an integral part of being successful, which demonstrates that fear of failure not only negatively impacts individuals but also helps people learn to overcome future setbacks, which ultimately leads to learning, personal fulfilment, and future success.
The society we live in has stigmatised the word “failure”, which creates constant fear. It would be helpful if people create an understanding of the same. If we learn that failure is an inevitable part towards success, it can be helpful in overcoming the feelings of fear of failure. Like Kunal, we may never learn to eliminate fear from our lives, but we can learn to move forward with it.
References +
Afandi, N. H., Atmoko, A., Ramli, M., Muslihati, M., & Abdullah, A. (2026). Why are People Scared to Fail? A Collective Case Study of Atychiphobia on Indonesian Early Adulthood Students. Asian Journal of Human Services, 30(1), n/a.https://doi.org/10.14391/ajhs.e3001.1.014
Boileau, L., Gaudreau, P., & Pétrin-Pomerleau, P. (2025). Fear of Failure as Motivation: A Novel Conceptualisation and Measure. Journal of Personality Assessment, 108(2), 235–249. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2025.2555358
Conroy, D. E., Kaye, M. P., & Fifer, A. M. (2007). Cognitive links between fear of failure and perfectionism. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy, 25(4), 237–253. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-007-0052-7
Martin, A. J., & Marsh, H. W. (2003). Fear of failure: Friend or foe? Australian Psychologist, 38(1), 31–38. https://doi.org/10.1080/00050060310001706997
Atychiphobia (fear of failure) | Communication and Mass Media | Research Starters | EBSCO Research. (n.d.). EBSCO. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/communication-and-mass-media/atychiphobia-f ear-failure
Castrillon, C. (2022, October 17). How to cope with the fear of failure. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2022/10/16/how-to-cope-with-the-fear-of -failure/
Understanding the roots of atychiphobia: The science behind the fear of failure | by E.D. Gibson | Medium. (n.d.). https://deconch30.medium.com/understanding-the-roots-of-atychiphobia-the-science-behi nd-the-fear-of-failure-e64c016db8f4
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