engleski

Predictors and consequences of test anxiety

Test anxiety represents one of the key aspects of low motivation and has negative effects on school performance. Constructs that can be related to test anxiety are reinforcement sensitivity and dysfunctional attitudes. Reinforcement sensitivity refers to the assumption that the personality consists of three neuropsychological systems: behavioral activation (BAS), fight-flight-freeze (FFFS), and behavioral inhibition (BIS) system. Individual differences in the sensitivity of these systems are reflected in personality traits and vulnerability to some difficulties (i.e. anxiety). Dysfunctional attitudes are the intermediate level of Beck’s conceptualization of beliefs which result in interpreting biases in evaluating situations, interfering with the information processing. Test anxiety could be accompanied by other psychological difficulties, like depression and academic stress. So, the aim of our study was to investigate whether dysfunctional attitudes mediate between reinforcement sensitivity and test anxiety, and whether test anxiety predicts depression and academic stress. Reinforcement sensitivity was represented by BIS and FFFS, while test anxiety consisted of worry and emotionality dimension. Participants were 537 high school pupils from first to fourth grade. Data were collected by The Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory Personality Questionnaire, Dysfunctional Attitude Scale, Test Anxiety Inventory, Children’s Depression Inventory and four items regarding academic stress constructed by the authors. It was found that test anxiety-worry was a partial mediator between (1) BIS, through dysfunctional attitudes, and depression ; (2) BIS and stress ; (3) FFFS and depression. Test anxiety- emotionality was a partial mediator between FFFS and stress. Direct relations between predictors, BIS and FFFS, and criteria, depression and stress, were significant. Dysfunctional attitudes and test anxiety-worry predicted depression, while test anxiety- emotionality predicted stress.

test anxiety; dysfunctional attitudes; reinforcement sensitivity; depression; academic stress

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