Prevalence of Test Anxiety and Associated Factors among Addis Ababa University Graduating Students: Cross-Sectional Study
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Date
2024-10-13
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Introduction: Test anxiety is a psychological and emotional factor that affects students. Studies about test anxiety, including previous research in Ethiopia, have primarily focused on medical and health science students, leaving a gap in understanding test anxiety across fields.
Objective: To investigate the prevalence of test anxiety and identify associative factors with it among Addis Ababa University final-year undergraduate (graduating) students.
Method: A cross-sectional research and stratified random sampling techniques were utilized to select a sample of participants. Test anxiety was assessed by the Westside Test Anxiety Inventory. Oslo Social Support Scale-3 was utilized to measure social support. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was utilized to measure self-esteem. GAD-7 utilized to measure anxiety level, and questionnaires developed by the researcher after reviewing different literature to measure students` perceptions about exit exam, course load, and the new curriculum. Data were analyzed using the SPSS 26. To identify associative factors from multivariable data, ordinal logistic regression analysis was performed.
Result: A total of 380 students participated. Of these, the prevalence of test anxiety is 50.5% (95% CI: 45.4-55.7). The most common symptoms found in this study were: wandering thoughts during exams (28.4%), difficulty concentrating as the exam approached (26.6%), worrying about remembering material (24.7%), and fear of poor performance or failure (18.5%). In this finding 20.8% of participants had low self-esteem, 31.3% had poor social support, and 5.0% of participants had severe anxiety levels. This study found multiple factors that are significantly associated with high test anxiety. The result reported that social science field of study (AOR: 1.96, 95% CI: 1.29-2.98), minimal and mild anxiety level (AOR: 0.34, 95% CI: (0.11, 0.97) respectively, students` positive and neutral perception about exit exams, course load and new curriculum (AOR: 0.18, 95% CI: 0.10-0.33), and (AOR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.21-0.54) respectively were most significantly associated with test anxiety p-value < 0.05.
Conclusion: Test anxiety was a significant problem among Addis Ababa University final-year undergraduate (graduating) students. The most often linked associated factors for test anxiety were perception, and field of study. This result emphasizes the necessity of focused intervention to address particular issues and lessen test anxiety.
Key words: Graduating students, test/exams, and test anxiety
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Graduating students test/exams and test anxiety.