Change in mental ability as a function of test anxiety and type of mental test.

Abstract

2 general trends are shown by the study: mental ability scores tend to change from fifth to seventh grade differentially for high and low test anxiety groups, and this change is related to the type of test used in measuring mental ability. These trends have 2 implications: (a) the earlier the anxiety level of school children can be identified, the earlier they can be provided a therapeutic program to help them recognize the interaction between their anxiety and various types of situations; (b) the interpretation of change in mental ability must take into account variations in type of measuring instrument.