Strength in the variable-oriented approach is the possibility to measure theoretical constructs using well defined and validated measurements (Bergman & Andersson, 2010). Adopting a variable- and a person-centered approach in this study enabled us to investigate the individuals, and thereby their context, as well as the constructs/variables (i.e., investigating specific dimensions of fear failure). The findings of this study, specifically those we found to be contrasting in the different tests—such as the finding that the link between emotional/physical exhaustion and fear of failure was statistically insignificant in the regression analysis showed otherwise when we applied a person-oriented approach. That is, when using the person-oriented approach, athletes with high levels of fear of failure also showed symptoms of emotional/physical exhaustion. This strengthens our assumption that adopting variable- and person- oriented approaches together can be a valuable approach for researchers to adopt, where both approaches would provide complimentary information to improve theory.