Individual differences in fear of success were measured for 98 female and 33 male college students. For females, fear of success was significantly related to performance decrement on masculine but not feminine tasks, with the relationship accounting for approximately 6 percent of the variance. (Author)

This study examines four hypotheses concerning the nature of fear of success (FOS). Data were gathered in two stages. First, respondents in a large sample survey of metropolitan Detroit area residents were asked to tell a Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) story. In the second stage, white currently-married females aged 18 to 56 whose households…