Reducing Test or Performance Anxiety

Find the causes and solutions

Reducing Test or Performance Anxiety

Tom G. Stevens PhD

Index

Information
Advice
Internet Links

INFORMATION 

The term "test anxiety" means that you are experiencing an above average degree of anxiety while you are taking examinations. Performance anxiety is high anxiety in other performance situations (public speaking, sports, etc.).  It's causes aren't very different from causes of any kind of anxiety--especially other types of "performance anxiety", and you can learn how to get a great deal of control over it.  

Examples of common causes of frequent, high degrees of test anxiety include:

• Not feeling confident about knowing the material well enough (maybe you really don't and need to study more or better), go to our Learning and Study Skills help page.

• Factors that can increase test anxiety include: the importance of the test; time pressures; a critical instructor,  peers, or parent; a subject you are not confident in;  a certain type of test (e.g. essay or objective);

• Anxiety about your grades or achievement.  If you are trying to make grades that are very difficult for you in order to get into a graduate program, get a certain job, or obtain some other outcome, then you may experience constant pressure to do extremely well on every test.  This problem will be increased if you "put all your eggs in one basket" and don't have good alternatives to your primary goal.  Develop acceptable plan B, plan C, etc. so that you don't think you will fall into a dark pit if you don't get into graduate school or achieve plan A.  Having acceptable alternative plans can greatly reduce anxiety caused by goals that are difficult to achieve. To learn more about modifying goals to reduce anxiety click here.

• Anxiety due to too much negative feedback or traumatic events.  It may be that you have had one or more very negative experiences associated with test-taking.  In this case, you may need counseling and/or systematic desensitization.

• General problems with anxiety and/or depression.  If you are a generally anxious or depressed person that causes problems in many life situations, then you may need counseling.  You can read more about negative emotions and their causes by clicking here.

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ADVICE 
If you are experiencing test anxiety, it can have significant effects upon your grades. Don't ignore it.  You can improve it significantly with help.

One Technique: FOCUSING "ON THE BALL" CAN HELP US OVERCOME ANXIETY (copied from Dr. Stevens' web link below)

Performance anxiety produces interfering thoughts. There are many types of performance anxiety, but they have similar causes. Test anxiety is a good example and is very common among students. Research (and my clinical observation) has shown that people who have test anxiety are really spending much of their test time thinking negative thoughts. These negative thoughts may involve possible consequences of not doing well on the test, of self "put-downs," of thinking how they are doomed to fail, or of many other negative themes. 

It is not just the negativism of these thoughts that reduces students chances of doing well on the test. In addition, they may spend 10 to 30 minutes out of a 50-minute test hour focusing on these negative thoughts. That leaves them only 20 to 40 minutes to focus on the content of the test and search their memory for answers. Their classmates have the whole 50 minutes! 

Control focus to "prime" and control your brain's search for memory associations. If you focus on the word "apple," your memory naturally begins to search for related associations, such as the visual image of an apple and taste of an apple. If you focus on negative themes, your memory will produce associated thoughts such as previous failures or terrible things that could happen if you don't do well. Even prolonged debating with yourself to generate positive thoughts can interfere with "keeping your eye on the ball" in many performance situations. 

You control your brain's search and "priming" of content-related memories by controlling your focus of attention. If you direct your focus to the actual content of the test, speech, or other performance, then your memory will naturally search for associations related to the performance. You will recall the content necessary to answer the questions.

Refocus "on the ball" during a task to overcome anxiety. Use the following steps to overcome performance anxiety and maximize concentration during the performance. 

(1) Observe your focus. During the performance, let your Higher Self (or "inner observer") partly be alert to the occurrence of negative or other interfering thoughts. Examples: "What will everyone think of me?" "What if I fail?" "This can't be happening to me." "Why can't I remember this." "I worked so hard." "This is terrible." "I can't cope with this." "I don't know what to do." "I'm a failure." "That is so stupid." "What's the matter with me." 

(2) Refocus on the content. When you observe interfering thoughts occurring, remember the following: 
These thoughts are interfering with your focus on the content and preventing success. You do not have time to deal with the underlying issues now; you can deal with them later. You can (optionally) repeat short pre-planned positive statements to yourself (see 3). Instead, focus your attention on any part of the actual content of the current task that will get you re-engaged in the immediate task. This new focus will even help you remember "forgotten" material that you couldn't recall when you were focusing on negative thoughts (because the new focus primes related memories).

(3) Later, examine underlying issues. At times outside the performance situation (or during breaks), examine the interfering thoughts. What were the content and themes of the interfering thoughts? Work on this later or with a counselor.

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INTERNET LINKS 

Test Anxiety and Performance Anxiety Help Links

=> Focusing to Deal with Performance and Test Anxiety
A quick technique for reducing test or performance anxiety immediately in the actual performance situation.
Dr. Tom Stevens
www.csulb.edu/~tstevens/h87focus.htm#FOCUSING ON THE BALL CAN HELP US OVERCOME

=> Improve Comprehension and Memory for Better Grades
This guide has been used by hundreds of students to study more efficiently and improve their grades. It is especially for those who study hard, but don't do as well as they would like. Tom G. Stevens PhD, CAPS, CSULB
http://www.csulb.edu/~tstevens/LEARN.htm

=>Use of self-desensitization and systematic relaxation to ease test anxiety.  A method strongly supported by research.
http://www.csulb.edu/~tstevens/Desensit.htm

*** Test Anxiety Tips--Virginia Tech University Counseling Center
http://ub-counseling.buffalo.edu/stresstestanxiety.php

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Help with Anxiety Links

Go to our Anxiety links help page--especially if you are having trouble with anxiety in other situations in your life.

Self-Help and other resources on this website (and site map)