Causes of Tension and Stress
According to Pauk (1984), test anxiety results from tension, not stress. Stress is the response of the body to any and all demands placed on it. Tension, however, results when the body responds in the wrong way to stressors.
Stress is like body temperature - it goes up and down. One must create a balance. One's body cannot tell the difference between positive stress and negative stress. For some people, some amount stress improves task performance; but for many, stress hampers one's ability to perform task.
With respect to tests, anxiety often arises for one or more of the following reasons. Do any of them sound familiar?
- the student is physically or mentally unhealthy
- the student has a negative self-image and lacks confidence in his/her abilities
- the student dislikes the subject, course, and/or instructor
- the student has a history of poor performance on exams in general or in the course
- the student realizes he/she is inadequately prepared for the exam
- the student has inappropriate expectations about his/her preparation for the exam
- the student is overwhelmed by the amount of information to be learned
- the student is unable to locate or forgets exam supplies
- the student does not know what to expect on the exam
- the student arrives late to the exam or can't find the room
Do you experience test anxiety? How severe is it? How vulnerable are you to stress? Two means of evaluating your propensity to stress in general and to test anxiety in particular are provided below. If you are negatively affected by test anxiety, refer to the strategies described later in this page for ideas on coping with it. Develop a test anxiety and stress management plan.