Failure Avoidance Motivation in a Goal-Setting Situation Sarah R. Heimerdinger and Verlin B. Hinsz North Dakota State University This study examines the relationships among failure avoidance, performance, and re- lated variables in a goal-setting situation. Failure avoidance has been relatively ig- nored in research investigating the impact of dispositional factors in goal-setting situ- ations. As a precursor to important goal mechanisms, failure avoidance was considered in light of Locke’s (1991) motivational sequence framework for motiva- tional processes. College students (N = 171) responded to a survey assessing perfor- mance goals, self-efficacy, and other pertinent variables, and then completed an idea-generating task. The results show that failure avoidance was negatively corre- lated with self-efficacy, goal commitment, and task performance. The relationship between failure avoidance and performance was mediated by relationships with self-efficacy and personal goals. Goal commitment moderated the relationship be- tween personal goals and performance. The results of this study are discussed in terms of Locke’s motivational sequence, suggesting that failure avoidance motiva- tion, although overlooked, has important consequences in goal-setting situations. Motivation is a very important determinant of our behavior. In the workplace or school settings, whenever individuals engage in effortful activities, achievement and productivity are believed to relate to motivation. Many early motivation theo- rists concentrated on individual differences related to the desire to succeed as the major components in achievement (Atkinson & Feather, 1966; Lewin, Dembo, Festinger, & Sears, 1944; McClelland, 1985). However, numerous conceptual for- mulations have distinguished between approach and avoidance motivation (Atkinson, 1957; Dweck, 1986; Elliot & Harackiewisz, 1996; Nicholls, 1984). Ap- proach motivation involves a desire to succeed with behavior being shaped by an orientation toward a positive outcome. In contrast, for avoidance motivation, the behavior is directed by an orientation toward negative outcomes (Atkinson, 1957; Human Performance, 21:383–395, 2008 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 0895-9285 print/1532-7043 online DOI: 10.1080/08959280802347155 Correspondence should be sent to Verlin B. Hinsz, Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58105. E-mail: Verlin.Hinsz@NDSU.edu