In a study carried out at Bilkent University in Turkey and Ghent University in Belgium, Aikaterini Michou and colleagues questioned more than 1,000 high school and university students about their motivation to learn and the learning strategies they used. The students who were afraid to fail were more cautious, more likely to set goals that allowed them to feel better about themselves, rather than to pursue new interests or enhance personal development. They were also less likely to use the most effective learning strategies.