Low self-esteem and exam anxiety go hand in hand
Imagine you're sitting an exam, your heartbeat pounding away. Suddenly you lose control of the situation and can't remember any of what you've studied. You've blanked out! If you recognise this situation, you'll have experienced a case of exam anxiety. According to Hanne Leth Andersen, Pro-Rector, internal/external examiner and professor of university pedagogics, the risk of students being overwhelmed by exam anxiety is strongly associated with their self-esteem.
“Exam anxiety is about low academic self-esteem and fear that you might confirm a worry that you're not good enough,” explains Pro-Rector Hanne Leth Andersen.
“Students suffering from severe exam anxiety have in many cases experienced an unpleasant sense of failure, either in a teaching situation because they feel they've been singled out for not having sufficient skills, or at an exam where they've failed to achieve success – and that feeling stays with them. In other words, it has a lot to do with a student's basic academic self-esteem,” says Ms Leth Andersen. She explains that people who do not experience examination anxiety are basically more confident about themselves and their ability to perform.
“They are confident that they have what it takes and, in particular, that if they make an effort, they can acquire knowledge. These are also people with a strong motivation to learn and they're not afraid to show it. They have a fundamental belief in themselves and their ability,” says Ms Leth Andersen. Students with a high degree of self-confidence may have done poorly at exams, but they do not have the same conviction that they will do poorly again.
“When you have low academic self-esteem, you perform in order to avoid failure. If you have high self-esteem and positive expectations that you will do well, then you perform better. Self-esteem is hugely related to the expectations a student has about him- or herself. In other words, a student with positive expectations will not perceive failure as something that will repeat itself,” says Ms Leth Andersen, referring to social-cognitive theories on motivation and mastering.
According to Ms Leth Andersen, some students also experience that they have an ability to concentrate when taking an exam that they don't have in everyday situations. “In fact, some people just love taking an exam and getting a chance to talk about subjects they find hugely interesting, and with an approach like that, you obviously expect to do well,” she explains.
The good news is that it is possible to change your approach to taking exams and thereby avoid exam anxiety.