Cognitive Behavioral Model of Test Anxiety in a High-Stakes Context: An Exploratory Study

Test anxiety and its determinants among health sciences students at Mattu University: a cross-sectional study

Background

Test anxiety is a particular type of anxiety that is marked by physical, cognitive, and behavioural symptoms when taking and performing tests. It is defined as "severe stress" before, during, and after exams and other assessments. Test anxiety could cause poor academic performance and increase dropout rates. This study aimed to determine the levels of test anxiety and its determinants among health sciences students at Mattu University.

Methods

An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 421 selected students from June 1 to June 30, 2021. The study utilized the Westside Test Anxiety, the Oslo Social Support Scale, the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and the Kessler Scale to assess test anxiety, social support, self-esteem, and psychological distress, respectively. The collected data were entered into EpiData version 3.1 and then exported to STATA version 14.0 for analysis. A linear regression model was used to determine factors associated with test anxiety. The multiple regression assumptions were checked for each variable. Statistically significant effects were assumed for a p-value of less than 0.05 at a 95% confidence interval in the multiple linear regression analysis.

Results

A total of 416 (99%) participants were completed out of the 420 questionnaires administered. The mean score of test anxiety among participants was 25.3 (SD: ±5.51). Tobacco use (β: 1.028; 95% CI: 0.709-1.347), khat chewing (β: 0.115; 95% CI: 0.038-0.192), self-esteem (β: -0.049; 95% CI: -0.062-(-0.036)), psychological distress (β: 0.022; 95% CI: 0.017-0.027), and physical activity (β: -0.162; 95% CI: -0.224-(-0.099)) were shown to have a significant association with test anxiety.

Conclusion

Test anxiety was common in the study area. Current substance use (tobacco use and khat chewing) and psychological distress were discovered to be factors that exacerbated test anxiety, whereas self-esteem and physical activity were discovered to be factors that alleviated test anxiety. Therefore, students and stakeholders need to work to discourage those factors that increase test anxiety while promoting factors that alleviate it.

Keep Calm and Be Humble: Can Intellectual Humility Predict Test Anxiety?

Test anxiety is common and may lead to a range of negative outcomes, including poor exam performance. Therefore, it is important to explore psychological predictors of test anxiety. In this paper, we examined whether intellectual humility can predict test anxiety. In Study 1, college students (N = 181) completed an intellectual humility measure with four subscales and two different measures of test anxiety. In Study 2 (N = 196), a community sample recruited from an online workforce completed the same measures. In both studies, we found that intellectual humility was negatively related to test anxiety, such that higher intellectual humility predicted lower test anxiety. Specifically, Study 1 demonstrated a negative correlation between intellectual humility and the Sarason Test Anxiety Scale; Study 2 confirmed this negative relationship with both the Sarason and Westside test anxiety scales. We also found that this relationship was largely driven by the intellectual humility subscale of Independence of Intellect and Ego. Additionally, these results were present even when controlling for key demographic factors. These findings highlight intellectual humility's role in predicting exam anxiety and offer a potential avenue for intellectual humility to be leveraged into interventions to decrease exam anxiety in the future.

Cognitive perspectives on maintaining physicians' medical expertise: V. Using a motivational framework to understand the benefits and costs of testing

We apply a motivational perspective to understand the implications of physicians' longitudinal assessment. We review the literature on situated expectancy-value theory, achievement goals, mindsets, anxiety, and stereotype threat in relation to testing and assessment. This review suggests several motivational benefits of testing as well as some potential challenges and costs posed by high-stakes, standardized tests. Many of the motivational benefits for testing can be understood from the equation of having the perceived benefits of the test outweigh the perceived costs of preparing for and taking the assessment. Attention to instructional framing, test purposes and values, and longitudinal assessment frameworks provide vehicles to further enhance motivational benefits and reduce potential costs of assessment.

Tracking stress, depression, and anxiety across the final year of secondary school: A longitudinal study

Levels of distress, which include stress, depression, and anxiety, are often heightened during the final year of secondary school and have been linked to major examinations that occur during this time period. However, relatively little is known about how these symptoms change over the course of the year or what moderates symptom severity. Using a longitudinal survey design, we tracked student outcomes and potential moderators (i.e., gender, test anxiety, self-efficacy, connectedness with peers, school and family, perceived use of fear appeals by teachers) associated with stress, depression, and anxiety once per term (i.e., 4 times total) over the final year of high school in seven Australian high schools. We hypothesised that student symptoms would increase over time and that symptom severity would be moderated by individual and environmental factors. Six hundred and thirty-eight unique students (M age = 16.95 years, SD = 0.56, range = 15-18 years, female = 474 [74.29%]) participated in at least one of the four surveys administered during each term of the final year of high school. Linear mixed models indicated that stress (d = 0.2) and anxiety (d = 1.7) increased over time. When all potential moderators of distress were entered into the full model, gender, test anxiety, emotional self-efficacy, and peer connectedness were all significant unique predictors of stress. Similar patterns were found for symptoms of depression and anxiety. Time 3 stress was predicted by unique variance in baseline stress, higher test anxiety, and academic self-efficacy. Overall distress increased over time and was moderated by gender, as well as by test anxiety, self-efficacy, and peer connectedness, which are areas that can then be targeted by interventions designed to maintain distress at optimum levels for wellbeing and academic performance.

Academic Stress in the Final Years of School: A Systematic Literature Review

Heightened academic stress in the final years of schooling is a common concern, yet little is known about how stress changes over time and what individual, school and family factors are associated with distress. We conducted a systematic review to examine the nature of distress in students in their final two years of secondary school. Sixty studies were eligible for inclusion. The main findings indicated severity of distress differed across the 17 countries sampled and measures used. There was some consistencies suggesting about 1 in 6 students experienced excessive distress. Female gender and anxiety proneness were consistently associated with increased distress, and freedom from negative cognitions with reduced distress. There was some evidence that individual characteristics (perfectionism, avoidance, coping, self-efficacy, resilience), lifestyle (sleep, homework), school, family and peer connectedness were associated with distress. Overall at-risk students can be predicted by theoretical models of anxiety and distress targeted with psychological interventions.

Test anxiety components: an intra-individual approach testing their control antecedents and effects on performance

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Although anxiety consists of multiple components, including cognitive, affective, motivational, and physiological, and some findings suggest that there might be differences regarding their control antecedents and effects on performance, previous studies have largely neglected to examine these components separately and for reasons of convenience often assessed test anxiety as a unified construct using a single-item. Therefore, this study investigated the different test anxiety components with the goal to: (1) examine the relative impact of the anxiety components in the mediating mechanism that connects control and performance - as proposed by Pekrun's control-value theory, and (2) determine which specific anxiety component is underlying common single-item anxiety measures.

METHODS

The research questions were investigated using an intra-individual approach in a sample of N = 137 German 8th graders during a mathematics exam.

RESULTS

As expected, control was negatively related to all anxiety components, but associations varied in strength. Additionally, the components differed in their relative impact on performance, with the cognitive component being central for this outcome. Furthermore, common single-item measures seem to specifically assess the affective component, and thus not the component most relevant for test performance.

CONCLUSION

Consequently, our study strongly recommends to distinguish between the anxiety components depending on the research question at hand.

The Development and Validation of a New Multidimensional Test Anxiety Scale (MTAS)

Abstract. Although test anxiety has a long history in the educational and psychological literature there is a lack of census over its dimensionality. The aim of the present study was to clarify the dimensionality of test anxiety and develop a new instrument to reflect this dimensionality. Across two empirical studies we tested and refined a new multidimensional instrument comprising of two cognitive dimensions (Worry and Cognitive Interference) and two affective-physiological dimensions (Tension and Physiological Indicators). In both studies, four-correlated-factors and higher order models showed a good fit to the data. Test anxiety was positively related to an existing test anxiety measure (the Test Anxiety Inventory) and an elevated risk of mental health problems, and negatively related to school well-being and examination performance. This new instrument will prove a welcome addition for practitioners, to assist in the identification of highly test anxious students who may require support or intervention, and test anxiety researchers.

Reassurance seeking and spoiled answers on academic tests

Background: The current study examined whether test-related reassurance seeking is associated with lower scores on a high stakes, standardized test (i.e., the ACT) after controlling for academic performance in high school, and with spoiled answers (i.e., changing correct answers to incorrect) on a subsequent academic exam. Method: Students (N = 59) completed measures of test-related reassurance seeking behavior, other test anxiety-related constructs, and social anxiety-related constructs prior to taking the last in-class exam in their introductory psychology courses. Erasure marks on the bubble answer sheets were inspected to identify the number of spoiled answers. Results: Replicating results from a prior study, reassurance seeking predicted underperformance on the ACT. In addition, reassurance seeking predicted the number of spoiled answers on the in-class exam. Reassurance seeking did not predict irrelevant changes or corrections. Conclusions: Overall, these results provide additional evidence that test-related reassurance seeking is associated with performance on academic tests, and novel evidence that test-related reassurance seeking is associated with spoiling answers.

Cognitive-behavioral intervention for test anxiety in adolescent students: do benefits extend to school-related wellbeing and clinical anxiety

Background and objectives: Cognitive-behavioral interventions have been shown to be effective treatments for test anxiety. Studies on school-aged populations, however, are lacking. Design and methods: In the present study we evaluated a six-session cognitive-behavioral intervention for test anxiety in a sample of secondary school students aged 14-16 years preparing for high-stakes examinations. Furthermore, we extended outcomes to include school-related wellbeing and clinical anxiety. A screening procedure was used to identify highly test anxious persons who were randomly allocated to intervention or wait-list control groups. Results: Test anxiety showed a large reduction following intervention compared to control group participants who showed a moderate reduction. Clinical anxiety showed a small to moderate reduction following intervention compared to control group participants who showed a negligible reduction. The reduction in clinical anxiety was mediated by concurrent reductions in test anxiety. Conclusion: This supports an integrative network approach that deactivating core aspects of anxiety can deactivate associated networks of anxiety symptoms. The intervention showed no impact on school-related wellbeing which increased at a similar rate for both intervention and control group participants. This is likely because test anxiety is just one contributor of many to school-related wellbeing. Implications for school-based treatments are discussed.

Test anxiety effects, predictors, and correlates: A 30-year meta-analytic review

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Since the 1988 publication of Hembree's seminal meta-analysis on test anxiety, much has changed in the theoretical conceptualization of test anxiety, as well as the influences on test performance. The present study examined the influence of test anxiety on a variety of educational outcomes, in addition to demographic and intrapersonal correlates.

DESIGN AND METHODS

Results of 238 studies from 1988 to the present, were synthesized via a meta-analytic framework to explicate predictors, correlates, and relationships with the test anxiety construct. Pooled effect sizes were calculated.

RESULTS

Results indicated that test anxiety was significantly and negatively related to a wide range of educational performance outcomes, including standardized tests, university entrance exams, and grade point average. Results were most pronounced at the middle grades level. Self-esteem was a significant and strong predictor of test anxiety. Perceived difficulty of the test and the high-stakes nature or consequences of the test was also related to higher test anxiety.

CONCLUSIONS

The magnitude of the relationship of test anxiety across a number of variables was in the small to moderate range. Implications for researchers and educators are discussed including the use of evidence-based assessment and interventions when warranted.

Instructional context and student motivation, learning, and development: Commentary and implications for school psychologists

From an ecological perspective, learning and development in childhood and throughout the lifespan occur in the context of interactions within complex social networks. Collectively, the articles in this special issue illuminate three important themes related to teacher-student interactions within instructional contexts: relationships, competence, and agency. Through consultation and systems level advocacy, school psychologists can use these themes as starting points for improving the instructional context for both students and teachers.

Readying students to test: The influence of fear and efficacy appeals on anxiety and test performance

Educational accountability policies have led to a growth in the use of high-stakes examinations for a number of important educational decisions, including the evaluation of teacher effectiveness. As such, educators are under increasing pressure to raise student test performance. In an attempt to prepare students for a high-stakes exam, teachers often resort to using threat-based messages that focus on the negative consequences of test failure rather than messages highlighting students’ ability or expectation for high performance. However, the relative influence of teacher messaging (threat-based or facilitating) under different testing conditions is unknown. The present investigation examined the use of fear and efficacy appeals with 487 university students. Anxiety, motivation, and test performance data were collected during a typical, lower stakes testing situation and a higher-stakes, final course examination. A two-way mixed ANOVA and a mediation analysis were used to examine between (i.e. fear and efficacy appeals) and within (i.e. different testing conditions) subject factors. Results suggest that fear appeals significantly harm student test performance relative to efficacy appeals, even when controlling for the impact of intrinsic motivation on test anxiety. Contrary to prediction, student anxiety did not appear to explain the relationship between fear appeals and lowered test performance. The potential implications of findings are discussed, including the importance of instructional context with regards to teacher instructional practices and student success.

Academically buoyant students are less anxious about and perform better in high-stakes examinations

BACKGROUND

Prior research has shown that test anxiety is negatively related to academic buoyancy, but it is not known whether test anxiety is an antecedent or outcome of academic buoyancy. Furthermore, it is not known whether academic buoyancy is related to performance on high-stakes examinations.

AIMS

To test a model specifying reciprocal relations between test anxiety and academic buoyancy and to establish whether academic buoyancy is related to examination performance.

SAMPLE

A total of 705 students in their final year of secondary education (Year 11).

METHODS

Self-report data for test anxiety and academic buoyancy were measured in two waves in Year 11. Examination performance was taken from the mean English, mathematics, and science scores from the high-stakes General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) examinations taken at the end of Year 11.

RESULTS

Measurement invariance was demonstrated for test anxiety and academic buoyancy across both waves of measurement. The worry component of test anxiety, but not the tension component, showed reciprocal relations with academic buoyancy. Worry predicted lower mean GCSE score and academic buoyancy predicted a higher mean GCSE score. Tension did not predict mean GCSE score.

CONCLUSION

Academic buoyancy protects against the appraisal of examinations as threatening by influencing self-regulative processes and enables better examination performance. Worry, but not tension, shows a negative feedback loop to academic buoyancy.