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'''Setting up to fail''' is a phrase denoting a [[No-win situation|no-win situation]] designed in such a way that the person in the situation cannot succeed at the task which they have been assigned. It is considered a form of [[Social:Workplace bullying|workplace bullying]].<ref>Stambor, Zak.[https://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug06/apathy.aspx "Bullying stems from fear, apathy."] ''APA.com''. Originally published in ''Monitor on Psychology''. American Psychological Association. July/August 2006, vol. 37, no. 7. p. 72</ref>  There are also situations in which an organization or project is set up to fail.<ref name=skeptic/><ref name = "AusFent"/> and where individuals set themselves up to fail.<ref name=boyatzis/>

The first known documented use of "set up to fail" was in 1969 in the United States.<ref>
[https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=8-zQAAAAMAAJ&q=%22set+up+to+fail%22&dq=%22set+up+to+fail%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=4f4BVY6nKsTiU-CzgOAO&ved=0CEkQ6AEwBw Economic Opportunity Amendments of 1969: Hearings, Ninety-first Congress, First Session, on H.R. 513]</ref>

==In the workplace==
Setting up to fail is a well-established [[Social:Workplace bullying|workplace bullying]] tactic.<ref>Peyton, PR. ''Dignity at Work: Eliminate Bullying and Create a Positive Working Environment'' (2003)</ref><ref>Rayner C, Hoel H A. "Summary Review of Literature Relating to Workplace Bullying", ''Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology'', volume 7, issue 3, pages 181–191, June 1997</ref><ref>Randle J Workplace Bullying in the NHS (2006)</ref> One technique is to overload with work, while denying the victim the authority to handle it and over-interfering;<ref>J-F Manzoni/J-L Barsoux, ''The Set-up-to-fail Syndrome'' (2007) p. 5 and p. 12</ref> another is the withholding of  the information necessary to succeed.<ref>Tim Field, ''Bully in Sight'', Success Unlimited (1996) pp. 63–7 {{ISBN|978-0-9529121-0-1}}</ref>

If a person puts another individual (usually a subordinate) in a [[Medicine:Occupational stress|stressful]] situation in which failure is almost certain, this may be an aspect of [[Social:Bullying|bullying]] wherein the outcome can then be used to [[Social:Discrediting tactic|discredit]] and [[Philosophy:Victim blaming|blame the victim]].<ref>Tim Field, ''Bully in Sight'' Success Unlimited (1996) p. 43 {{ISBN|978-0-9529121-0-1}}</ref> Sometimes, this may involve the bully covertly sabotaging and [[Social:Social undermining|undermining]] an objective that may have otherwise been achievable. This type of bullying may be the result of the projection of the bully's own feelings of inadequacy onto the victim.<ref>S. White, ''An Introduction to the Psychodynamics of Workplace Bullying'' (2013) pp. 31–2</ref>

There can be cases where an employee is set up to fail because the stated goals of the task are considered harmful to the organization; an internal investigation is one example. Institutions may protect themselves by "going through the motions" of a sham investigation in which the findings conveniently fail to find any evidence of wrongdoing by the authorities involved with setting up the investigation.

==Bigotry==
Minorities seeking acceptance into the mainstream are often concerned about being set up to fail in the face of covert institutional racism&nbsp;– something feared for example by the first black US naval officers.<ref>Paul Stillwell/Colin L Powell, ''The Golden Thirteen'' (2003) p. 98 and p. 86</ref>

==Families==
Parents may have excessive expectations for their children's academic success for instance, thus setting them up for failure by hoping they may solve their parents' problems for them.<ref>Debra Wesselmann, ''The Whole Parent'' (2003) p. 104</ref> The result may be to create a self-destructive syndrome in the child&nbsp;– the so-called Divine Child complex.<ref>Polly Young-Eisendrath, ''Women and Desire'' (London 2000) p. 107 and p. 113</ref>

==Therapy==
Therapy may be sabotaged by either the client or the provider. The client, both hoping for and fearing the possibility of real help, may impose conditions on the therapy that all but guarantee its failure.<ref>Neville Symington, ''Narcissism'' (2003) p. 70</ref> Conversely, the helper, needing to keep clients in a state of dependency,<ref>P. Casement, ''Further Learning from the Patient'' (1990) p. 144</ref> may be threatened by the prospect of success/closure, and undermine the therapy accordingly.<ref>Eric Berne, ''Games People Play'' (1966) pp. 126–7</ref>

==Setting oneself up to fail<!--This section is linked from [[Philosophy:Impostor syndrome|Impostor syndrome]]: do not rename without including an anchor to previous name (MOS:HEAD)-->==
A person setting themselves up for failure may do so because they have a fear of failure, an unrealistic assessment of their own abilities, or because they are naive and uninformed regarding the abilities necessary to succeed. In some cases, an individual has an unjustified expectation that they will fail, a self-reinforcing negative spiral,<ref name=boyatzis>R. E. Boyatzis/A. McKee, ''Resonant Leadership'' (2005) p. 156</ref> or failure neurosis<ref name=enotes>{{cite web|last=De Mijolla|first=Alain|title=Failure neurosis|url=https://www.enotes.com/failure-neurosis-reference/failure-neurosis|publisher=Enotes|accessdate=8 April 2013}}</ref>&nbsp;– perhaps driven by a sense of guilt,<ref>Otto Fenichel, ''The Psychoanalytic Theory of Neurosis'' (1946) p. 506</ref> or by the compulsion to repeat self-destructive behaviour.<ref>S, Freud, ''On Metapsychology'' (PFL 11) pp. 292–3</ref>

==In television==
It is a tactic used in reality television, where situations are engineered to produce certain results.<ref name = "AusFent">Fenton, Andrew and Anna Brain. [https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/television/insiders-say-sleep-deprivation-and-setting-contestants-up-to-fail-are-common-tricks-of-the-trade/story-fni0cjvj-1227514099525 "Insiders say sleep deprivation and setting contestants up to fail are common tricks of the trade"]. ''The Daily Telegraph'' (Australia). September 5, 2015.  Accessed September 5, 2015. Originally from [https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/insiders-say-sleep-deprivation-and-setting-contestants-up-to-fail-are-common-tricks-of-the-trade/story-fn8yvfst-1227514099525?sv=de7b067521996b03d5249c278376d647 ''news.com.au''].</ref> ''My Kitchen Rules'' contestant Emily Cheung told the reporter that "she believes the producers set them up for failure in the instant restaurant round when they were told at 6 o'clock the night before they had to cook a Chinese dish they weren't familiar with—smoked quail—and scored 2 out of 10".<ref name = AusFent/> The same article goes on to state that, "A former Apprentice contestant feels similarly [[Philosophy:Psychological manipulation|manipulated]], saying he believed producers had already decided who they wanted to win when he was eliminated."<ref name = AusFent/>

==9/11 Commission==
9/11 Commission member Lee H. Hamilton was quoted as saying that "the Commission was set up to fail"; some observers interpreted this as meaning that he was dissatisfied with the results of the 9/11 Commission Report, and conspiracy theory developed. The context of the interview transcript indicates that Hamilton said his reasoning was that "Tom Kean and I were substitutes—Henry Kissinger and George Mitchell were the first choices; we got started late; we had a very short time frame—indeed, we had to get it extended; we did not have enough money—3 million dollars to conduct an extensive investigation. We needed more, we got more, but it took us a while to get it."<ref name=skeptic>[http://other.skepticproject.com/articles/quotes/view/27/911-commission-member-said-commission-was-setup-t/ Quotes - 9/11 Commission member said Commission was set up to fail].''Skeptic Project.'' Accessed September 5, 2015.</ref>

==In popular culture==
* In the film ''The Producers'', theater show producers tried to set up a show to fail by intentionally including bad taste themes.
* In the film ''The Hudsucker Proxy'' a corporation attempts to find a "dimwit, a proxy, a pawn, somebody we can really push around" for CEO, in order to manipulate the stock price to crash so that the board of directors can gain greater control of outstanding shares.
* Reginald Perrin tried to set himself up to fail by starting a shop called Grot, which only sold useless goods.

==See also==
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* Designing to fail
* [[Unsolved:Destabilisation|Destabilisation]]
* Glass cliff
* [[Unsolved:Mind games|Mind games]]
* [[Moving the goalposts]]
* Psychological abuse
}}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

{{Psychological manipulation}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Setting Up To Fail}}
[[Category:Error]]

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