Effective test taking: Skills-acquisition versus anxiety-reduction techniques

A skills-acquisition treatment for test anxiety was compared with 2 anxiety-reduction conditions, cue-controlled relaxation and meditation, and a practice-only group in terms of improved test performance. 50 highly test-anxious Ss representing the most anxious 28% of 232 undergraduates administered the Achievement Anxiety Test were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 experimental conditions. The 3 treatment groups received 5 90-min training sessions while the practice-only group was given an equal amount of time in practice on a posttreatment analog test (AT). Results indicate that the skills-acquisition group was superior to the other 3 conditions in terms of GPA and AT performance. The skills-acquisition group reported greater knowledge of effective test-taking skills and less attentional interference during testing than the other groups. Measures of heart rate and pulse transit time during the AT showed no significant group differences. It is suggested that the term "test anxiety" be retired and that inadequate test performance be reconceptualized as ineffective test taking. (35 ref)