Self-handicapping is the strategy which people use in order to keep and raise positive self-image in their own eyes as well as in the eyes of others. Self-handicapping involves any action or choice of performance setting that enhances the opportunity to excuse failure and to accept credit for success. The aim of this research was to examine whether self-handicapping is adaptive or maladaptive self-protection and self-presentation strategy, therefore relation between self-handicapping and positive (adaptive) and negative (maladaptive) perfectionism has been examined. Positive perfectionists are people who set for themselves high but realistic and achievable goals which are adjusted to situation, they are motivated by the wish for success, and their sense of self-worth is independent of their performace. Negative perfectionists set for themselves non-realistic and unachievable goals, they are extremely rigid, motivated by the fear of failure, focused on avoiding mistakes, and extremely self-critical at failure. We have assumed that there is low negative correlation between self-handicapping and positive perfectionism and somewhat higher positive correlation between self-handicapping and negative perfectionism. Besides, we have expected higher self-handicapping at participants with high negative perfectionism than at those with low negative perfectionism, and that there will be no difference in expressed self-handicapping between participants with the highest and the lowest positive perfectionism. The Self-handicapping Scale and Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale have been applied to 337 students of Zagreb School of Economics and Management, Social Work Studies Programme Faculty of Law, Faculty of Kinesiology and Faculty of Special Education and Rehabilitation of the University of Zagreb. The results have shown that there is no correlation between self-handicapping and positive perfectionism, and there is moderate positive correlation between self-handicapping and negative perfectionism. It has also been shown that people with high negative perfectionism are significantly more self-handicapping than those with low one. With certain limitations, it has been concluded that results point to maladaptive nature of self-handicapping.Samoopterećivanje je strategija koju ljudi koriste kako bi očuvali i uzdigli pozitivnu sliku o sebi kako u vlastitim očima, tako i u očima drugih ljudi, a uključuje bilo koju tvrdnju, akciju ili izbor okruženja za izvedbu koje povećava mogućnost opravdanja neuspjeha ili prihvaćanja zasluga za uspjeh. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je ispitati je li samoopterećivanje adaptivna ili neadaptivna strategija samozaštite i samopredstavljanja pa se stoga ispitivao odnos samoopterećivanja i pozitivnog (adaptivnog) odnosno negativnog (neadaptivnog) perfekcionizma. Pozitivni perfekcionisti su osobe koje si postavljaju visoke, ali realne i dostižne ciljeve koje prilagođavaju situaciji, motivirani su željom za uspjehom, a osjećaj vlastite vrijednosti im je neovisan o ishodu. Negativni perfekcionisti si postavljaju nerealne i nedostižne ciljeve, izrazito su rigidni, motivirani su strahom od neuspjeha, usmjereni na izbjegavanje pogrešaka, a kod neuspjeha su izrazito samokritični. Pretpostavili smo da između samoopterećivanja i pozitivnog perfekcionizma postoji niska negativna povezanost, a između samoopterećivanja i negativnog perfekcionizma nešto viša pozitiva povezanost. Osim toga, očekivali smo da će se sudionici s visokim negativnim perfekcionizmom više samoopterećivati od onih s niskim negativnim perfekcionizmom te da neće biti razlike u izraženosti samoopterećivanja između sudionika s najvišim i najnižim pozitivnim perfekcionizmom. Skala samoopterećivanja i Skala pozitivnog i negativnog perfekcionizma primijenjena je na 337 studenata Zagrebačke škole za ekonomiju i management, Studija socijalnog rada, Kineziološkog fakulteta i Edukacijsko-rehabilitacijskog fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu. Rezultati su pokazali da nema nikakve povezanosti između samoopterećivanja i pozitivnog perfekcionizma te da postoji umjerena pozitivna povezanost između samoopterećivanja i negativnog perfekcionizma. Također se pokazalo da se osobe s visokim negativnim perfekcionizmom statistički značajno više samoopterećuju nego one s niskim. Uz određena ograničenja, zaključeno je da rezultati ukazuju na neadaptivnu prirodu samoopterećivanja
