Assertion: Task Difficulty Preference

Individuals with a high need for achievement are often drawn to tasks that are neither too easy nor too difficult. They prefer challenges that offer a moderate probability of success. This preference allows them to experience a sense of accomplishment when they succeed, as the success is clearly attributable to their own skills and efforts.

Reason: Role of Failure Avoidance

The statement suggests that individuals high in achievement motivation are also motivated to avoid failure. While the primary driver is often the desire for success, the potential for failure on challenging tasks is a factor. To maintain self-esteem and a sense of competence, individuals may strategically choose tasks where failure is unlikely (very easy tasks) or where failure carries little negative consequence (very difficult tasks, where failure is expected). However, for high achievers, the *intermediate* difficulty level presents a balance. Success here is meaningful, and failure, while possible, is not predetermined and can be overcome through effort, thus avoiding the negative implications of failure more effectively than taking on impossible tasks.

Evaluating the Explanation

Reason (R) serves as a correct explanation for Assertion (A) because the motivation to avoid failure influences the choice of tasks.

• High achievers select intermediate tasks because they offer a realistic chance for success, thereby fulfilling the need for achievement.
• Simultaneously, this choice helps them avoid the negative consequences associated with failure that might occur on overly difficult tasks. They are not primarily driven by avoiding failure like someone with a high motive to avoid failure (who might choose extremely easy tasks), but the avoidance aspect plays a role in refining their choice towards the 'sweet spot' of intermediate difficulty.

Therefore, the drive to succeed, combined with a motivation to avoid failure, leads high achievers to prefer tasks of intermediate difficulty.