<![CDATA[ABSTRACT Failure in the Seleksi Nasional Berdasarkan Tes (SNBT) often triggers psychological pressure that undermines prospective students' perception of competence and personal self-worth. In anticipating this threat to self-esteem, students tend to adopt self-handicapping tactics as a form of psychological compensation. This study aims to comprehensively uncover the experiential structure of self-handicapping among participants who did not pass the SNBT through a phenomenological lens. This qualitative inquiry employed a purposive sampling technique involving three informants who met specific inclusion criteria. Data collection relied on semi-structured in-depth interviews, emotional gesture observations, and verbatim transcript documentation, which were subsequently analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological procedure and validated via technique triangulation and member checking. Field findings confirm that self-handicapping is articulated through behavioral channels, such as study procrastination and activity diversion, as well as claimed channels involving external attributions to exam difficulty and intense competition. This self-defense dynamic is escalated by the presence of fear of failure, diminished self-efficacy, anxiety over family expectations, and a competitive environment. Nevertheless, the post-SNBT failure phase does not culminate in passive despair; instead, it transforms into a space for reflective evaluation that fosters student awareness to restructure their learning strategies more adaptively. ABSTRAK Kegagalan dalam Seleksi Nasional Berdasarkan Tes (SNBT) kerap memicu tekanan psikologis yang merusak persepsi kompetensi dan keberhargaan personal calon mahasiswa. Mengantisipasi ancaman terhadap harga diri tersebut, siswa cenderung mengadopsi taktik self-handicapping sebagai sarana kompensasi psikologis. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk membongkar secara komprehensif struktur pengalaman self-handicapping pada peserta yang tidak lulus SNBT melalui kacamata fenomenologi. Penelusuran kualitatif mengeksekusi teknik purposive sampling terhadap tiga orang informan yang memenuhi kriteria inklusi spesifik. Pengumpulan data mengandalkan wawancara mendalam semi-terstruktur, observasi gesture emosional, dan dokumentasi transkrip verbatim, yang selanjutnya dianalisis menggunakan prosedur fenomenologi Colaizzi serta diuji keabsahannya via triangulasi teknik dan member checking. Temuan lapangan mengonfirmasi bahwa self-handicapping terartikulasi melalui saluran perilaku (behavioral) berupa penundaan belajar serta pengalihan aktivitas, dan saluran alibi (claimed) melalui atribusi eksternal atas kerumitan soal maupun ketatnya persaingan. Dinamika pertahanan diri ini tereskalasi oleh keberadaan fear of failure, penurunan self-efficacy, kecemasan atas ekspektasi keluarga, serta iklim persaingan yang kompetitif. Meskipun demikian, fase pasca-kegagalan SNBT tidak bermuara pada keputusasaan pasif, melainkan bertransformasi menjadi ruang evaluasi reflektif yang mendorong kesadaran siswa untuk merestrukturisasi strategi belajar secara lebih adaptif.]]>
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