©ARC Page | 167 Effects of Systematic Desensitisation Technique on Test Anxiety among Secondary School Students

Abstract: Test anxiety is an observable fact that many students usually encounter during tests. It is considered to be one of the most common and widespread emotions, with a large number of the student population suffering from its excessive and overbearing level. This study investigated the Effect of Systematic Desensitisation Technique in reducing Test Anxiety among secondary school students. Two research questions were posed and two hypotheses formulated to guide the study. The study is a quasi experimental research and employed a 2x2 factorial design pre test-post test experimental control group, comprising two groups (Experimental group and control) using one treatment group (Systematic Desensitisation Technique {SDT}. The population comprised all the secondary school students in Onitsha urban areas with test anxiety. A total of 75 students were selected from three schools using a standardised instrument titled “Test Anxiety Inventory”. The instrument, Test Anxiety Inventory was administered to both the experimental group and the control group before and after treatments, making up the pre test and post test. The data relating to the research questions were analysed using mean scores. The data relating to the null hypotheses were analysed using the Analysis of Co-variance (ANCOVA). The result of the study showed that systematic desensitisation technique was effective and significant in reducing test anxiety. The study further revealed that the difference on effectiveness of systematic desensitisation technique i