A cross‐cultural latent profile analysis of university students' cognitive test anxiety and related cognitive‐motivational factors

The successful treatment of test anxiety treatment requires an understanding of the unique barriers and challenges faced by test‐anxious students. Therefore, the current study utilized a combination of person‐centered and qualitative methods to investigate the existence of unique subpopulations or subtypes of test‐anxious students within Turkish and United States student samples. University students ( N = 422) completed measures of cognitive test anxiety, self‐efficacy, academic buoyancy, failure appraisal, academic self‐handicapping, and goal commitment. Participants also completed open‐ended questions assessing facilitators and inhibitors of academic success. The results of a multigroup latent profile analysis identified four learner subtypes in both the Turkish and United States samples. However, our analyses revealed structural differences in latent profiles identified in two cultural contexts. Furthermore, the qualitative results emphasized the importance of self‐regulated learning, buoyancy, goal commitment, and self‐actualization to academic success. Our discussion emphasizes the importance of considering learners' unique characteristics when designing educational supports. Students from both samples were found to be differentiated into unique subgroups, capturing a broad variation in test anxiety severity from low to moderate to high. One key takeaway for practitioners was the finding that students who question their ability to implement effective self‐regulated learning strategies are prone to elevated test anxiety. Students' responses revealed noteworthy parallels with the quantitative results. Specifically, students characterized by elevated self‐efficacy, effective regulation of their learning strategies, and unwavering commitment to academic goals were more likely to persist despite encountering academic setbacks. One notable pattern that was identified is the relatively consistent relationship between academic buoyancy and test anxiety observed across profiles within both cultural contexts.