1. I avoid responsibility for bad things I do or bad results I get.
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2. When I am about to procrastinate, I stop myself by recognizing the real
reasons behind it.
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3. I look for the possible causal explanations for both my successes and failures.
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4. I test myself to keep track of what I understand, and to detect what I don’t understand.
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5. I manage situations in my life by analyzing the relationship between them and my ensuing thoughts, behaviors, and the reactions of others.
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6. When I read a textbook, I construct different kinds of questions as a way of locating and understanding the main points.
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7. When I have a paper to write, I just sit down and write it right out of my head.
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8. In class, I use techniques I have learned or invented for efficient note taking.
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9. When I am feeling “squeezed,” I consider the effect on self-beliefs and feelings to keep me from getting caught in the cycle of procrastination.
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10. When the instructor says something I don’t understand, I ask a question.
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11. I keep track of my behavior and the conditions under which it occurs.
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12. When I am writing a paper, I search the environment to learn about something or acquire the information I need.
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13. I avoid trying a hard task for fear that I might fail.
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14. When I find a task difficult, I put less effort into doing it.
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15. I am helped to control my negative thoughts by realizing that we live in a mental world largely of our own making.
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16. I let my mind wander in class and miss some of the things that are said.
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17. I thoroughly prepare for my tests so that I will be less anxious when taking them.
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18. I make diagrams to help me visualize concepts I am learning in my classes.
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19. I consciously work on changing my self-doubting thoughts into self-confident ones.
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20. I use the questions I have written from my class notes to help me study for exams.
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21. I construct daily and weekly checklists to help me better manage my time.
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22. When I don’t get the results I want, I change my strategy.
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23. I break down large activities into bite size pieces to help me get started on them.
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24. I rely on just reading a chapter to understand and remember what it’s about.
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25. I am attracted to situations and people that weaken me and tear me down.
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26. I keep track of how I spend my time so that I can find ways to use it more wisely.
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27. I write questions and answers from my textbook reading to help me prepare for exams.
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28. When I slip up on something, I regard it as a temporary setback and redouble efforts to reinstate control.
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29. The thought enters my mind that I would be doing a lot better if it weren’t for outside factors.
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30. I perceive myself as being incapable of managing my life.
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31. Before I write a paper, I build an outline of the questions I want the paper to answer.
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32. I focus on the success stories in my life.
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33. I deal with a paper writing assignment by dividing it into several manageable tasks.
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34. I participate in study groups to help me prepare for my tests.
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35. I rely on one method for coping with serious problems rather than using a variety of different ones.
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36. When I read about new concepts, I create examples to help me know what they mean.
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37. I set challenging but attainable goals to help me take reasonable risk.
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38. I lose self-control when I become depressed, anxious, or angry.
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39. To build my self-confidence, I force myself to take on challenging tasks.
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40. I read over my lecture notes and construct questions to help me locate and understand the main points.
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41. I put effort into creating a support system for myself before a serious problem occurs rather than trying to adapt to it after it happens.
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42. I turn my papers in without applying editing and proofing strategies to catch any mistakes.
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43. I focus on the causes I can control, and not the ones I can’t.
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44. I pay attention to what my instructors emphasize in class in order to anticipate exam questions.
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45. I put what I read into my own words to help me better understand and remember it.
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46. I set behavior goals for myself on a weekly basis.
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47. I use feedback to improve my performance on tests.
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48. I control my fears about failing by focusing on self-confident thoughts.
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49. When I find myself in a difficult situation, I tell myself how to behave.
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50. I make outlines involving questions and answers to help me read textbook or magazine content for meaning and understanding.
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51. I justify procrastinating by rationalizing that I work better under pressure.
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52. I write topic sentences to help me build paragraphs that answer the major thesis question of the papers I write.
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53. I construct charts to organize important information that might appear on exams.
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54. I question my own capabilities by thinking negative thoughts about myself.
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55. I evaluate potential topics for a paper or talk by building a chart to help me consider the relative advantages and disadvantages of each topic.
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56. I seek out success-building experiences and people who can help me achieve success.
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57. I ask myself questions to help guide my learning.
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58. When I get a bad grade in a course, I blame the instructor.
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59. I use my note taking to help me pay attention to what the instructor is saying.
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60. I represent in visual form what I read to help me organize and remember it better.
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61. I give myself concrete rewards for accomplishing the tasks I need to do.
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62. To avoid wasting my time, I consistently tell myself what is important and monitor my progress toward my goals.
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63. I rely on memorizing information right before I take a test.
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64. I find little use for the class notes I have made.
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65. I observe people who are good models of success to build up my belief in myself.
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66. Regardless of the type of test, I use the same techniques to prepare.
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