How can stress affect testing results?

*How stress affects people:

It's still present in my mind how taking a test would affect me and this was years ago in different educational fields. One will start doubting his or her knowledge of what is going to be on a test, and this causes their self-confidence to fall down the charts, making their minds spin, and causing a sense of "not" being able to fully concentrate on what they study for the exam. If most people who take tests are like me, my mind would totally go blank, and I'd feel like a loose nut on a piece of equipment.

When people take tests, their self-esteem, self-confidence, and blood pressures are in a case of total severe let-down to them mentally. It truly affects their ability to achieve a high academic performance, and after the test is over, all the person can do is lick their wounds when the test score comes back as being poor. The poor score only pushes them further into test anxiety.

*Pressure to perform well:

The pressure to perform well on tests goes back to our early childhood days for most children, and it affects our test performances throughout our school years. Most students who fear tests and they know they're going to have a test during any given day, they're going to go into total overwhelming mode. They'll become blank on many occasions, hear nothing during any of their other classes for trying to review in their minds what they studied for the test and if they remember what they studied, they'll suffer nervousness, a lack of being organized and will be constantly thinking about the test and its end results.

Stress begins to start in us at an early age and it builds as we become leery or worried about a situation...and tests, for some, can be a big problem. Stress causes us to have many fears of some sort of failure, self-confidence, being made fun of if we get a poor grade, what mother or dad will think if our grade is bad, not being able to remember what we studied, etc., etc. It can also affect our study habits and cause us to be distracted to a point of having a hard time of studying because we're worrying about what we should study. Our minds will be racing nervously until the test is over.

*Summation:

Overcoming test anxiety is hard to do, but sitting yourself down and analyzing the why may be helpful. It also helps to recognize how to identify the anxieties and stresses that we're feeling at the moments prior to the testing. Go through each of the anxieties and stresses you're feeling and ask yourself why am I feeling this way? Don't allow yourself to cut down your ability to do good on a test but have confidence that you will succeed...never think negative. Go into class with a positive attitude, and do not let a negative attitude about the test enter your mind. Take your time and do not become nervous...read all instructions and be sure you understand the directions and questions, if you do not understand it, ask for an explanation from your instructor or teacher. Understand a question before you answer it...these tips will be beneficial if you'll keep your cool and practice these steps.

Learn more about this author, Barbara Kasey Smith.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

---

Add your voice

Know something about How stress can affect testing results?
We want to hear your view. Write now!