fear of exams

test anxiety

The fear of the next exam - many people know this feeling only too well. Already long before the actual exam fear can interfere with the exam preparation by negative chains of thought and pictures or even lead to "gaping emptiness" in the head at the decisive moment. But even though heart palpitations, a dry mouth, and trembling hands as a sign of "stage fright" are familiar to so many people, the fear of exams should not be taken lightly. The victims of massive test anxiety threatens by retiring in low-performance and audit-poor work areas a career far below their real potential.

contents

• test anxiety
• Synonyms
• Between specific phobia and social anxiety
• Fear of Exams: Symptoms and Consequences
• Disrupt destructive self-talk
• Negative expectations increase anxiety symptoms
• Fear of bad and good consequences
• Measures against fear of exams
• Psychological Counseling & Therapy
• Alternative medicine and natural remedies

Synonyms

Test anxiety, stage fright, specific phobia, specific anxiety, social phobia, social anxiety.

Many children suffer from assitive test anxiety, even though they actually have no reason to do so given their knowledge. (Image: Zlatan Durakovic / fotolia.com)

Between specific phobia and social anxiety

A healthy amount of excitement, which we also call stage fright, can activate and help us to increase our performance. Only when this feeling assumes irrational, inappropriate forms do we speak of fear or phobia. The fear of testing is very often a single, isolated fear. Examples of other common monophobias are the disproportionate fear of spiders or dogs. If this anxiety leads to the avoidance of exam situations and, in addition, that delusional symptoms and obsessional thoughts can be excluded, the fear of examinations according to the international classification of diseases is usually classified in the category of specific phobias. On closer examination, however, there are always symptoms of a social phobia, which is mainly to be described with the fear of a negative evaluation by other persons. For example, the fear of authority figures or speaking with unknown people before and during an exam situation can be quite relevant and lead to comparable physical and psychological symptoms. However, because the "real" social phobist does not limit the fear of evaluation to performance situations only, test anxiety is often seen as a special form of (specific) anxiety (with a strong social dimension).

Fear of Exams: Symptoms and Consequences

The fear of exams goes hand in hand with both physical and mental symptoms. While sometimes without serious consequences, it can have other significant social consequences. It is primarily vegetative symptoms that make life difficult for the examinee. These include shaking hands, sweating, abdominal pain, diarrhea and nausea, as well as palpitations, hyperventilation or inner restlessness. The social environment suffers from the noticeable imbalance and mood swings of those affected, which can increasingly lead to discomfort and loss of motivation in relation to the goal to be achieved. Unfortunately, the anxious by lack of concentration and blackouts actually often results in poor results that do not match the actual capabilities. Finally, avoiding further examining situations makes some examining fearful occupations below their abilities and forgoing an adequate career. However, studies have also found that many people with a fear of exams are particularly performance-oriented and, despite test anxiety, repeatedly face the challenge.

Fear of examinations can relate to at least four different areas, namely exam preparation, the actual exam situation, the consequences of an unsuccessful exam, and the consequences of a successful exam.

Disrupt destructive self-talk

In the exam preparation phase, negative thoughts can become a real hindrance to learning. Automated self-talk, in which one permanently pretends that it is not possible anyway, hampers the concentration on the subject matter and stifles the desire to learn already in the bud. This form of destructive beliefs ("I'm too stupid!", "It'll be embarrassing.") May be due to bad prior experience, but are more likely to be acquired in a parent's home where at least one parent has already exemplified the perfectionist and auditing-fearful model , An educational style in which one-sided achievement was rewarded with recognition does the rest. Healthy self-esteem beyond performance situations can only be more difficult under these conditions.

Negative expectations increase anxiety symptoms

An exam often involves unpredictable and thus uncontrollable factors that - with negative expectations - already circling in the mind in advance and trigger fears: "Who will be the examiner?", "Will the examiners be generous or pedantic in their assessment behavior? "," What questions are being asked exactly? "," I'm probably asking for areas that I know least about. ", U.s.w ...

In the exam situation itself often the physical symptoms of anxiety dominate, which can even increase to a panic attack. Again, it is our own negative evaluation, which let the first appropriate situational reactions to a physical threat. Thus, an accelerated heartbeat resulting from the stress reaction becomes a threatening heart attack and trembling legs are a sure sign of a fainting spell. Of course, this focus on the symptoms prevents attention to the exam questions and the mobilization of the learned. Concentration problems and blackouts are the consequences.

Fear of bad and good consequences

Fear of the ill effects of an exam can be related to concrete effects, such as when a student receives no further financial support (Bafög) or can not retake the exam. Often, however, the "loss of sight" in the foreground, the "failure" in the eyes and in the eyes of other people in the foreground. Fear of embarrassment and shame constantly circling around in the head, which is then limited to learning available. All these factors increase the pressure already in the learning phase and can seriously affect the performance.

It is not so rare that candidates can be "slowed down" by the fear of too good performance. As a rule, those affected are not aware of these relationships, but they appear to be uncomfortable about being more powerful than other, possibly friendly, fellow combatants. They shy away from direct competition because they are afraid of jeopardizing social relationships because of better performance, even though they basically belong to the ambitious, perfectionist type. Behind the fears of failure that arise in connection with the upcoming test, these people are actually afraid of losses.

Measures against fear of exams

First and foremost, test anxieties should review their learning organization. Structured scheduling and appropriate portioning of the study material can avoid unnecessary time pressure and acute overloading ("at the last minute"). Self-help books and professional learning advice are available for teaching helpful organizational and learning strategies. In addition, psychologists, educators and non-medical practitioners offer various forms of counseling and treatment against the fear of exams.

Psychological Counseling & Therapy

Should negative thought patterns interfere with exam preparation, it may be trained to interrupt them at the first signal, e.g. distracting actions are carried out (washing dishes, jogging, cooking tea). In addition, destructive beliefs behind it can be identified and changed. With suitable cognitive therapy methods, causes and backgrounds can be worked out in conversations and alternative formulations for positive self-reinforcement can be found ("You can do it!").

Particularly valuable in the case of test anxiety is the therapy with self-organizational hypnosis. In hypnosis, past successes are remembered not only visually but emotionally, boosting self-esteem in general and increasing confidence in the upcoming trial. Images of individually developed inner resting oases can relieve stress symptoms. Allegedly causal situations and relationships, influences and beliefs can be identified and changed with therapeutic methods in hypnosis. Finally, a (wishful) film can be produced in the inner cinema that anticipates the successful course of the exam and in which the good feelings and reactions of the other people after the exam are also tested. In this way, the factors experienced as uncontrollable and therefore anxiety-causing factors (examiners, subjects, course of events) as well as expectations regarding the consequences of the examination are favorably influenced.

Alternative medicine and natural remedies

Experience medicine, the positive influence of diet on brain performance and emotions has long been known, she finds general recognition gradually by modern brain research, which represents (not only) on this subject a soothing contrast to the drug-based brain-doping strategies of pharmaceutical companies. An optimal brain nutrition for learning ensures, above all, a balanced blood sugar level and sufficient unsaturated fatty acids.

Before attempting self-help with alcohol or strong calming tablets in the stress-prone test subjects, which may affect the performance in the long term, a timely intake of anxiolytic, sedative or mood-enhancing plant drugs or homeopathic remedies from natural medicine is preferable. In conversations and with specific diagnostic and test procedures, naturopaths determine one or more remedies which, taking into account the individual constitution, can alleviate the symptoms.

Energetic procedures, such as knock acupressure, body and ear acupuncture have a balancing effect on the entire organism and regulate the autonomic nervous system. For home use are also ear candles, breathing exercises, healing currents, self hypnosis, meditation or yoga to relax the soul, body and mind. (Jvs)
Specialist supervision: Barbara Schindewolf-Lensch (doctor)

Book tip for exam preparation:
Kossak, Hans-Christian: "Learning Made Easy" Carl-Auer-Systeme 2008