answer:Some researchers think this kind of behavior is based upon fear of failure. If you don’t attempt something, you cannot fail, and can imagine with part of your mind that if only you had done it, you would have been a success. Obviously this is a cognitive issue, based on the way you “frame” the activity, and on your “schema” for success and failure. It will not surprise you to to learn that I believe cognitive-behavioral therapy is very well suited to deal with this sort of issue in highly-directed brief counseling.