-
PloS One 2023Statistics anxiety is common among social science students. Despite much evidence examining statistics anxiety and test performance, little research has explored the...
BACKGROUND
Statistics anxiety is common among social science students. Despite much evidence examining statistics anxiety and test performance, little research has explored the role of student self-prediction on test performance in a higher education setting.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between statistics anxiety and both students' self-prediction of their future exam performance and actual test performance on a formal statistics assessment at undergraduate level in psychology students in the UK.
METHOD
Using a cross-sectional design, two hundred and two students were required to complete Statistics Anxiety Rating Scales, the Mathematical Prerequisites for Psychometrics Scale, and provided self-predicted test performance scores. Test performance data was obtained from a formal statistics assessment.
RESULTS
As predicted, we demonstrated statistics test anxiety to be negatively associated with self-predicted performance. Additionally, we found statistics anxiety was positively associated with test performance.
CONCLUSION
The findings highlight the complex relationship between statistics anxiety and test performance, suggesting there may be an optimal level of anxiety for performance in statistics assessments.
IMPLICATIONS
The results we report have implications for psychology research methods and statistics instructors who may wish to incorporate the findings into statistics instruction modules in order to assuage high levels of statistics anxiety and foster student well-being.
Topics: Humans; Cross-Sectional Studies; Anxiety; Anxiety Disorders; Students; United Kingdom
PubMed: 37611055
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0290467 -
The British Journal of Developmental... Sep 2022Previous studies mainly investigated working memory (WM) and math anxiety (MA) leaving almost unexplored other aspects of executive functions (EFs) in middle school...
Previous studies mainly investigated working memory (WM) and math anxiety (MA) leaving almost unexplored other aspects of executive functions (EFs) in middle school period. Filling the gap in the literature, the aims of this study were: (1) to better examine the relationship between MA and math performance, (2) to better examine the relationship between EFs and math performance and (3) to investigate the interplay between EFs and MA on math performances. This study confirmed a significant and negative relationship between MA and math performance, indicates a significant and positive relationship between visuospatial WM and math performance, shifting and math performance and highlight a scarcely investigated indirect influence of MA through the measure of shifting on math performance. Our findings shed further light on the mediating role of EFs between MA and math performance and underline some future perspectives.
Topics: Anxiety; Executive Function; Humans; Mathematics; Memory, Short-Term; Students
PubMed: 35394078
DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12412 -
Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine 2017To date, much research has been devoted to understanding how anxiety can affect sport performance, both in practice and in competitive settings. It is well known that... (Review)
Review
To date, much research has been devoted to understanding how anxiety can affect sport performance, both in practice and in competitive settings. It is well known that sport has the potential for high levels of stress and anxiety, and that practicing and employing a range of psychological strategies can be beneficial in anxiety management. Equally, growing evidence also suggests that anxiety can play a role in sport injury prevention, occurrence, rehabilitation, and the return to sport process. The purpose of this paper is to provide current insights into sport-related anxiety. More specifically, it will provide the reader with definitions and theoretical conceptualizations of sport-related anxiety. This will be followed by making a case for considering the term "performance" to be broader than activities associated with sport-related performance in practice and competition, by including performance activities associated with sport injury prevention, rehabilitation, and the return to sport process. The paper will then highlight the importance of recognizing early signs and symptoms of anxiety, and the potential need for referral. Finally, the conclusions will emphasize the need for appropriate, client-specific, and practitioner competent care for athletes experiencing sport-related anxiety.
PubMed: 29138604
DOI: 10.2147/OAJSM.S125845 -
Psychology Research and Behavior... 2018Anxiety disorders are some of the most widespread mental health issues worldwide. In educational settings, individuals may suffer from specific forms of test and... (Review)
Review
Anxiety disorders are some of the most widespread mental health issues worldwide. In educational settings, individuals may suffer from specific forms of test and performance anxiety that are connected to a knowledge domain. Unquestionably, the most prominent of these is math anxiety. Math anxiety is a widespread problem for all ages across the globe. In the international assessments of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) studies, a majority of adolescents report worry and tension in math classes and when doing math. To understand how math anxiety takes effect, it has to be regarded as a variable within an ensemble of interacting variables. There are antecedents that facilitate the development of math anxiety. They concern environmental factors such as teachers' and parents' attitudes toward their students' and children's ability in math, societal stereotypes (eg, on females' math abilities), or personal factors such as traits or gender. These antecedents influence a number of variables that are important in learning processes. Math anxiety interacts with variables such as self-efficacy or motivation in math, which can intensify or counteract math anxiety. Outcomes of math anxiety concern not only performance in math-related situations, they can also have long-term effects that involve efficient (or not-so-efficient) learning as well as course and even vocational choices. How can math anxiety be counteracted? A first step lies in its correct diagnosis. Questionnaires for the assessment of math anxiety exist for all age groups, starting at primary education level. Help against math anxiety can be offered on different levels: by educational institutions, by teachers and a change in instructional approaches, by parents, or by the affected person. However, much more research is needed to develop effective measures against math anxiety that are tailored to an individual's characteristics and needs.
PubMed: 30123014
DOI: 10.2147/PRBM.S141421 -
Heliyon Jun 2023The aim of the research project is to find out how technostress influences the satisfaction, anxiety and performance of teleworkers and university students. The growth...
The aim of the research project is to find out how technostress influences the satisfaction, anxiety and performance of teleworkers and university students. The growth of technology and the use of digital platforms has given rise to a phenomenon called teleworking, a modality of work that involves remote work with the use of ICTs. However, the faster the use of ICTs in organisations grows, the more difficult it becomes for teleworkers, leading to anxiety and stress. This feeling is known as technostress, and knowing its impact on workers is of vital importance for organizational success. The study was conducted through a literature review and the dissemination of an online questionnaire using PLS software. The analysis validated the measurement scale and analysed the structural model at different stages, which confirmed its validity and reliability. The research concludes by affirming the high relationship between technostress, satisfaction, anxiety and performance. It is highlighted that the lower the technostress, the higher the satisfaction and performance, and the higher the technostress, the higher the anxiety and the lower the satisfaction. This research brings as an added value the validation of a scale of technostress together with the variables satisfaction, anxiety and performance not previously analysed by other researches. In addition, the research provides a series of measures to mitigate the effects of technostress and suggests future lines of research. Thus, it highlights the importance of understanding the impact of technostress on teleworkers, to provide effective measures to mitigate it and thus increase the satisfaction and performance of workers.
PubMed: 37389055
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e17201 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2023
PubMed: 38094704
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1328762 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2023Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) is a common challenge for classical musicians, however its etiology has received minimal research, particularly in regards to caregiver...
Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) is a common challenge for classical musicians, however its etiology has received minimal research, particularly in regards to caregiver experiences during childhood and adolescence. The aim of this research was to explore the impact of childhood experiences with parents along with patterns of dysfunctional cognitive schemas that develop through childhood ('Early Maladaptive Schemas'; EMSs) on the manifestation and severity of MPA in adulthood. Study 1 employed 100 adult professional, amateur, and tertiary student classical musicians from across Australia. Participants completed the Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ) and the Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory (K-MPAI). Study 2 included eight participants from Study 1, five of whom scored 1.5 standard deviations or more above the mean K-MPAI score and three of whom scored 1.5 standard deviations or more below the mean K-MPAI score. Participants were interviewed about experiences of parenting during childhood and adolescence, along with their experiences of MPA and musical training. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to explore themes in the interview data. Study 1 factor analysis revealed four higher-order EMS factors, = 13.74, < 0.001, one of which was a significant predictor of MPA, = 3.06, = 0.003. This factor comprised themes of failure, catastrophising, and incompetence/dependence. Study 2 qualitative analysis revealed various key parenting themes experienced in childhood that differentiated low- and high-MPA scorers in adulthood. Findings from both studies are discussed in light of clinical applications and interventions, and implications for both parents and music educators.
PubMed: 37359876
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1185296 -
BMC Psychology Nov 2023Academic performance is an important issue for Korean students. Various psychological factors contribute to academic performance. We aimed to evaluate the psychological...
BACKGROUND
Academic performance is an important issue for Korean students. Various psychological factors contribute to academic performance. We aimed to evaluate the psychological factors that affect academic performance integratively.
METHODS
A total of 102 academic high achievers and 120 comparison participants were recruited. We evaluated psychological factors (test anxiety, perfectionism, personality traits, resilience, and self-efficacy) and measured academic performance using the College Scholastic Ability Test and the current college grade. We compared psychological factors and academic performance between the academic high achiever and comparison groups. Multiple linear regression was then conducted to identify the significant psychological factors for high academic performance. Further, we used cluster analysis to classify the comparison group by the significant psychological factors and compared them among clusters and academic high achievers to determine the psychological characteristics of academic high achievers.
RESULTS
The academic high achiever group showed lower test anxiety (p = .002), less neuroticism (p = .001), higher self-efficacy (p = .028), and less socially prescribed perfectionism (p < .001) than the comparison group. Multiple linear regression results (p = .020) clarified that neuroticism (p = .020), test anxiety level (p = .047), and perfectionism (p = .035) were important factors predicting better academic performance. Academic high achievers had moderate test anxiety and perfectionism levels, with the best performance on the College Scholastic Ability Test.
CONCLUSIONS
Neuroticism, test anxiety levels, and perfectionism are important psychological factors for high academic performance. Interventions targeting these factors may help to improve academic accomplishments.
Topics: Humans; Perfectionism; Neuroticism; Personality; Cross-Sectional Studies; Test Anxiety
PubMed: 37996957
DOI: 10.1186/s40359-023-01369-y -
Psychological Research Nov 2012Under anxiety, people sometimes perform poorly. This concerns cognitive performance (e.g., taking an important exam) as well as perceptual-motor performance (e.g.,... (Review)
Review
Under anxiety, people sometimes perform poorly. This concerns cognitive performance (e.g., taking an important exam) as well as perceptual-motor performance (e.g., picking up a cup from a table). There is still much debate about how anxiety affects perceptual-motor performance. In the current paper we review the experimental literature on anxiety and perceptual-motor performance, thereby focusing on how anxiety affects the perception, selection, and realization of action possibilities. Based on this review we discuss the merits of two opposing theoretical explanations and build on existing frameworks of anxiety and cognitive performance to develop an integrated model that explains the various ways in which anxiety may specifically affect perceptual-motor performance. This model distinguishes between positive and negative effects of anxiety and, moving beyond previous approaches, recognizes three operational levels (i.e., attentional, interpretational, and behavioral) at which anxiety may affect different aspects of goal-directed action. Finally, predictions are formulated and directions for future research suggested.
Topics: Anxiety; Attention; Humans; Models, Psychological; Performance Anxiety; Psychomotor Performance
PubMed: 22038472
DOI: 10.1007/s00426-011-0384-x -
Royal Society Open Science Oct 2023Mathematics anxiety (MA), general and test anxieties affect mathematics performance. However, little is known about how different anxiety profiles (i.e. individual...
Mathematics anxiety (MA), general and test anxieties affect mathematics performance. However, little is known about how different anxiety profiles (i.e. individual configurations of anxiety forms) influence the relationship between MA and mathematics performance in university students. To the best of our knowledge, studies that have categorized participants based on their anxiety profiles and investigated how such groups differ in mathematics performance and other individual characteristics have all been conducted only with children and adolescents. Using latent profile analysis, we identified five different anxiety profiles in UK university students ( = 328) based on their MA, test anxiety (TA) and trait general anxiety levels (GA). Beyond extreme profiles (high or low levels in all forms of anxiety), we found groups characterized by more specific anxiety forms (MA profile, TA profile and high anxiety with low MA learning profile). These profiles were differentially related to arithmetic performance (but not the performance in a non-mathematics task), and individual factors (e.g. self-concept and self-efficacy). Results can inform the design of interventions tailored to individuals' unique anxiety profiles and highlight the necessity to further study the underpinning mechanisms that drive the MA developmental trajectory from childhood to adulthood.
PubMed: 37830022
DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230861