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Anxiety, Stress, and Coping Nov 2023High test anxiety has been associated with poorer academic performance. Test anxiety may affect academic performance by disrupting cognitive processes required for...
BACKGROUND
High test anxiety has been associated with poorer academic performance. Test anxiety may affect academic performance by disrupting cognitive processes required for complex academic tasks, such as reading comprehension.
OBJECTIVES AND METHOD
The objective of this cross-sectional study was to clarify the cognitive pathways through which test anxiety may affect reading comprehension performance using archival clinical data of adults (= 94; = 23.35, = 4.32) referred for a comprehensive psychological assessment for academic difficulties. Serial multiple indirect effects analysis was used to assess for the direct and indirect effects of test anxiety on reading comprehension through cognitive processing speed, working memory, fluid reasoning, and crystallized knowledge. A second serial multiple indirect effects analysis was conducted with trait anxiety as the antecedent.
RESULTS
Test anxiety had a significant indirect effect on reading comprehension through fluid reasoning (= -.08, = .04; 95% [-.15 to -.01]), while trait anxiety exerted no significant effect.
CONCLUSION
Results suggest that test anxiety and fluid reasoning play unique roles in disrupting academic functioning among individuals referred for academic difficulties. It may be that test anxious adults struggle to reason effectively in testing situations, leading to downstream difficulty comprehending text.
Topics: Adult; Humans; Young Adult; Comprehension; Reading; Test Anxiety; Cross-Sectional Studies; Problem Solving
PubMed: 36755396
DOI: 10.1080/10615806.2023.2169677 -
Nursing Reports (Pavia, Italy) Dec 2023Nomophobia is a phenomenon that describes the fear of not having one's mobile phone accessible. This study aimed to evaluate the presence of nomophobia among nursing...
UNLABELLED
Nomophobia is a phenomenon that describes the fear of not having one's mobile phone accessible. This study aimed to evaluate the presence of nomophobia among nursing students as well as its relationship with procrastination and social anxiety.
METHODS
An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted in a sample of 308 nursing students. Data were collected using the Nomophobia Questionnaire, Academic Procrastination Scale-Short Form, and Social Anxiety Questionnaire for Adults. Additionally, sociodemographic variables related to academic performance and smartphone use were collected. We performed a descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate analysis of the Nomophobia Questionnaire score.
RESULTS
19.5% ( = 60) of the students presented with or were at high risk of nomophobic behaviour. Moreover, nomophobic behaviour was positively correlated with high levels of social anxiety ( < 0.001), longer daily smartphone usage time ( < 0.001), and a high frequency of smartphone checking in class ( < 0.001). The predictive variables for nomophobic behaviour included age, variables related to smartphone use, social anxiety levels, work, procrastination tendency, sex, and self-reported average grade.
CONCLUSION
One out of five students in the sample studied presented with or were at high risk of nomophobic behaviour. Additionally, nomophobic behaviour was associated with social anxiety and variables related to smartphone use. This study was not registered.
PubMed: 38133116
DOI: 10.3390/nursrep13040140 -
Frontiers in Neuroscience 2023Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) is a prevalent condition among musicians that can manifest both psychologically and physiologically, leading to impaired musical...
INTRODUCTION
Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) is a prevalent condition among musicians that can manifest both psychologically and physiologically, leading to impaired musical performance. Physiologically, MPA is characterized by excessive muscular and/or autonomic tone. This study focuses on the cardiovascular blood pressure responses, autonomic tone and baroreceptor sensitivity changes that occur during musical performance due to MPA.
METHODS
Six professional pianists perform a piece for piano written only for the left hand by Alexander Scriabin. The following parameters have been studied during the performance: ECG, non-invasive beat to beat continuous arterial blood pressure and skin conductance. Sympathetic and parasympathetic autonomic flow was studied with Wigner-Ville analysis (W-V) from R-R ECG variability, and baroreceptor sensitivity with the Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT).
RESULTS
During the concert a significant increase of heart rate, systolic, mean and diastolic arterial pressure were observed. No significant differences were found in skin conductance. The W-V analysis, which studies frequency changes in the time domain, shows a significant increase of sympathetic flow and a decrease of parasympathetic flow during the concert which is associated with a significant decrease in sympathetic and vagal baroreceptor sensitivity.
DISCUSSION
The study of cardiac variability using the Wigner-Ville analysis may be a suitable method to assess the autonomic response in the context of MPA, and could be used as biofeedback in personalized multimodal treatments.
PubMed: 37539390
DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1213117 -
Acta Psychologica Nov 2023This study examined whether three subtypes of anxiety (trait anxiety, state anxiety, and social anxiety) have different effects on recognition of facial expressions. One...
This study examined whether three subtypes of anxiety (trait anxiety, state anxiety, and social anxiety) have different effects on recognition of facial expressions. One hundred and thirty-eight participants matched facial expressions of three intensity levels (20 %, 40 %, 100 %) with one of the six emotion labels ("happy", "sad", "fear", "angry", "disgust", and "surprise"). While using a conventional method of analysis we were able to replicate some significant correlations between each anxiety type and recognition performance found in the literature. However, when we used partial correlation to isolate the effect of each anxiety type, most of these correlations were no longer significant, apart from the negative correlations between Beck Anxiety Inventory and reaction time to fearful faces displayed at 40 % intensity level, and the correlations between anxiety and categorisation errors. Specifically, social anxiety was positively correlated with misidentifying a happy face as a disgust face at 40 % intensity level, and state anxiety negatively correlated with misidentifying a happy face as a sad face at 20 % intensity level. However, these partial correlation analyses became non-significant after p value adjustment for multiple comparisons. Our eye tracking data also showed that state anxiety may be associated with reduced fixations on the eye regions of low-intensity sad or fearful faces. These analyses cast doubts on some effects reported in the previous studies because they are likely to reflect a mixture of influences from highly correlated anxiety subtypes.
Topics: Humans; Facial Expression; Anxiety; Emotions; Anxiety Disorders; Happiness; Facial Recognition
PubMed: 38041913
DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2023.104100 -
Applied Neuropsychology. Child 2023Dyscalculia is a specific difficulty in learning mathematics that strongly influences activities of daily living that require skills such as counting and simple...
Dyscalculia is a specific difficulty in learning mathematics that strongly influences activities of daily living that require skills such as counting and simple mathematical operations. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of negative emotions on mathematical performance in children with and without developmental dyscalculia using psychosocial tests, a quality of life test, an anxiety test and the Zareki-R mathematical performance test. This pilot study was realized on a sample of 20 children in the first year of secondary school (a group of 10 dyscalculic children and another group of 10 control children with an average age of 12.65 years). Descriptive statistics showed that dyscalculic children had low scores on all Zareki-R subtests. The Mann Whitney analysis revealed a significant difference between dyscalculic children and typically developing children on the Zareki-R subtests and the quality of life test, but no significance was found for the anxiety test. Analysis of the ANOVA by gender revealed no significant differences for the three tests, and the opposite for the ANOVA by age ( = 3.86, dll = 2, ˂ 0.05). Using multiple linear regression, the subtests of physical quality of life, emotional quality of life and academic quality of life were significantly different for the two groups. In conclusion, the psychosocial quality of life and the high level of anxiety in dyscalculic children strongly influence their performance in mathematics.
PubMed: 35917565
DOI: 10.1080/21622965.2022.2105146 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2023Performance anxiety is a widespread issue that can affect musicians across their education and career. It can develop in musicians from a young age leading to short-term...
Performance anxiety is a widespread issue that can affect musicians across their education and career. It can develop in musicians from a young age leading to short-term and long-term impacts on not only their performance, but also their wellbeing. There is potentially a significant role that music educators hold in the development of their students and how they handle performance anxiety, though it is not clear how, or how often, teachers support their students in this way. Through a PRISMA-based systematic review, this paper explores what is known about the strategies used by music educators to help manage their students' performance anxiety. The paper also discusses the role that instrumental/vocal tutors and school classroom teachers might hold in this area. The findings show that music educators are implementing multiple strategies to assist their students with MPA, with the most common being simulated performance, positive outlook, preparation and breathing. It was found that there is a role for teachers to address MPA management with their students. While some students prefer to receive MPA support from experts in the field of psychology, students still expressed a need to have this support come from their teacher. Though many teachers felt a need for additional training for them to help their students cope with MPA, many of the strategies were found to be multifunctional and embedded into the regular teaching practices or teaching styles of the educator. Although these strategies might be implicit rather than explicit, the findings suggest that music educators could represent a valuable source of support for MPA management.
PubMed: 37588244
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1205150 -
Journal of Affective Disorders Jul 2024Patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) often present with anxiety, depression and cognitive deterioration. Structural changes in the cerebral cortex in PAH...
BACKGROUND
Patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) often present with anxiety, depression and cognitive deterioration. Structural changes in the cerebral cortex in PAH patients have also been reported in observational studies.
METHODS
PAH genome-wide association (GWAS) including 162,962 European individuals was used to assess genetically determined PAH. GWAS summary statistics were obtained for cognitive performance, depression, anxiety and alterations in cortical thickness (TH) or surface area (SA) of the brain cortex, respectively. Two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed. Finally, sensitivity analyses including Cochran's Q test, MR-Egger intercept test, leave-one-out analyses, and funnel plot was performed.
RESULTS
PAH had no causal relationship with depression, anxiety, and cognitive performance. At the global level, PAH was not associated with SA or TH of the brain cortex; at the functional regional level, PAH increased TH of insula (P = 0.015), pars triangularis (P = 0.037) and pars opercularis (P = 0.010) without global weighted. After global weighted, PAH increased TH of insula (P = 0.004), pars triangularis (P = 0.032), pars opercularis (P = 0.007) and rostral middle frontal gyrus (P = 0.022) while reducing TH of inferior parietal (P = 0.004), superior parietal (P = 0.031) and lateral occipital gyrus (P = 0.033). No heterogeneity and pleiotropy were detected.
LIMITATIONS
The enrolled patients were all European and the causal relationship between PAH and the structure of the cerebral cortex in other populations remains unknown.
CONCLUSION
Causal relationship between PAH and the brain cortical structure was implied, thus providing novel insights into the PAH associated neuropsychiatric symptoms.
Topics: Humans; Mendelian Randomization Analysis; Genome-Wide Association Study; Cerebral Cortex; Anxiety; Depression; Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension; Male; Female; Cognition; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Adult; Middle Aged
PubMed: 38621510
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.01.276 -
Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology :... Nov 2023Research on the neurocognitive effects of comorbid mood/anxiety disturbance in college athletes is limited. Previous research found that athletes with comorbid...
OBJECTIVE
Research on the neurocognitive effects of comorbid mood/anxiety disturbance in college athletes is limited. Previous research found that athletes with comorbid depression/anxiety performed worse on measures of attention/processing speed (A/PS) at baseline compared to healthy controls. However, this work solely examined mean performance. The current study expands upon this work by examining intraindividual variability (IIV) in relation to affective disturbance.
METHOD
835 (M = 624, F = 211) collegiate athletes completed baseline neuropsychological testing. Athletes were separated into four groups (Healthy Mood [n = 582], Depression Alone [n = 137], Anxiety Alone [n = 54], and Co-Occurring Depression/Anxiety [n = 62]) based on self-reported anxiety and depression. IIV was examined globally and within composites of A/PS and memory via intraindividual standard deviation, with higher scores indicating greater variability.
RESULTS
Linear regression results revealed that the Co-Occurring Depression/Anxiety group exhibited greater variability within the memory composite compared to the Healthy Mood group, as well as the Depression Alone and Anxiety Alone groups. The Depression Alone and Anxiety Alone groups did not differ from the Healthy Mood group on memory IIV. None of the groups differed on A/PS or global IIV.
CONCLUSIONS
Athletes with co-occurring depression/anxiety demonstrated greater variability in performance on memory tasks. Greater dispersion is predictive of greater cognitive decline following concussion; therefore, it is important that neuropsychological performance is interpreted beyond measures of central tendency. These findings also highlight the importance of having baseline data available for athletes with affective disturbance, as these factors may influence performance, place athlete at risk for poorer outcomes, and skew future post-concussion comparisons.
Topics: Humans; Athletic Injuries; Neuropsychological Tests; Brain Concussion; Cognitive Dysfunction; Athletes
PubMed: 37194439
DOI: 10.1093/arclin/acad037 -
Medicine and Science in Sports and... Jun 2024There is a well-established association between preexisting depression/anxiety and greater postconcussion symptom burden, but the potential impact of antidepressant...
INTRODUCTION/PURPOSE
There is a well-established association between preexisting depression/anxiety and greater postconcussion symptom burden, but the potential impact of antidepressant medications has not been fully explored. The primary objective of this study was to compare preinjury/baseline and postinjury concussion symptom scores and neurocognitive performance of athletes on antidepressant medications, both with healthy controls and with those with depression/anxiety not on antidepressants.
METHODS
This is a cross-sectional study using data collected from 49,270 junior and high school athletes from computerized neurocognitive assessments (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Test [ImPACT]) administered between 2009 and 2018 held by the Massachusetts Concussion Management Coalition. The main outcome measures were symptom scores and neurocognitive performance measures, all of which were assessed both at baseline and postinjury. Statistical analysis included analysis of variance and Tukey pairwise comparisons for continuous variables and Fisher's exact test for categorical variables. Multivariate regression models were used to adjust for potential confounding variables.
RESULTS
Both at baseline and postinjury, athletes with depression/anxiety had mean total symptom scores that were more than double that of healthy controls regardless of antidepressant use. Although there were no significant differences in neurocognitive performance at baseline, depression/anxiety was associated with small but significant decreases in postinjury visual memory and visual motor scores.
CONCLUSIONS
Both at baseline and after sustaining a concussion, young athletes with depression/anxiety experience significantly greater symptom burden compared with healthy controls regardless of antidepressant use.
Topics: Humans; Adolescent; Cross-Sectional Studies; Male; Female; Child; Antidepressive Agents; Neuropsychological Tests; Depression; Brain Concussion; Athletic Injuries; Anxiety; Post-Concussion Syndrome; Cognition
PubMed: 38233981
DOI: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000003383 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2024Even simple tapping tasks require cognitive processes. Some variants of the Finger Tapping Test (FTT) may reveal cognitive aspects associated with frontal processing,...
INTRODUCTION
Even simple tapping tasks require cognitive processes. Some variants of the Finger Tapping Test (FTT) may reveal cognitive aspects associated with frontal processing, including executive functions such as inhibition, or emotional aspects such as anxiety. A context of particular interest for the application of cognitive-motor-anxiety interactions is sports. Although athletes generally exhibit better anxiety levels, they may experience heightened anxiety before important competitions. The problem lies in determining whether the application of anxiety control techniques can be useful in pre-competition situations, given the lack of quick and easy methods to detect if an athlete is experiencing anxiety at a particular moment.
METHODS
This exploratory study evaluated anxiety using online versions of questionnaires (ISRA, the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2, and STAI) and applied a variant of the FTT to 204 participants, both athletes and non-athletes. The scores were compared and correlated.
RESULTS
Athletes exhibited lower general anxiety and greater cognitive resistance to interference (better cognitive inhibition). Non-athletes displayed a particular parameter in the FTT variant that differed from the one obtained by athletes and exhibited higher anxiety levels. In the athletes' group only, anxiety was correlated with a specific parameter of the FTT task.
DISCUSSION
Our conclusion is that this parameter holds potential relevance in elite sports performance to detect if an athlete is experiencing anxiety. It could be of particular interest in psychological interventions in sports. Further investigation is warranted to fully explore this potential.
PubMed: 38939223
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1424152