On the treatment of test anxiety : its nature, measurement, evaluation and self-efficacy

Test anxiety is a very complex phenomenon. It has been argued that the reason why comparative test anxiety treatment studies have usually reported negative or inconsistent results is due to (1)poor evaluation procedures and (2)using test anxiety as a convenient arena for testing psychotherapy techniques rather than attempting to devise a treatment that would effectively decrease test anxiety and increase academic performance. Based upon extensive research evidence an appropriate framework was developed within which to test the effectiveness of a treatment package (cognitive-attentional training plus study and exams skills) for test anxiety. The results showed this treatment package to be very effective in reducing exam anxiety. A vigorous effort was made to understand the course of test anxiety treatment. General anxiety, achievement motivation, verbal ability,numerical ability, and ethnocentrism affected the course of treatment at decreasing test anxiety, on one or more of the measures, in the short or in the long term or both. State test anxiety and Studying Habits (SH) affected the course of treatment in decreasing general anxiety. Subjects in the broad middle range of the numerical ability distribution had their cognitive-intellectual performance most affected by test anxiety and by changing levels of test anxiety. While greater test anxiety decreases were associated with greater increases in the more valid academic performance measure, they were associated with greater dercreas.es in performance on another academic measure as well as three ability measures. A distinction was made within self-efficacy theorizing. Self-efficacy in managing one's anxiety (SEMA) and self-efficacy in succeeding (SESC). SEMA is tantamount to the converse of anxiety. Two new measures were developed and validated (TASEQ and P-TASEQ) to enable the empirical testing of such distinction. Success of therapy paralleled subjects' levels of self-efficacy feelings