Influences of Test Anxiety on Freshman Students’ Academic Achievement at Universities

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the Influence of Test Anxiety on Freshman Students’ Academic Achievements at Eastern Ethiopian Public Universities. A correlational research design was employed through stratified and systematic random sampling techniques to collect pertinent data from 353 freshman students. The quantitative data collected through the questionnaire were analysed by stepwise multiple linear regression, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, and Karl Pearson’s Coefficients of Correlation to answer the basic research questions and hypotheses. Firstly, the cognitive, behavioural, and emotional components of test anxiety respectively contributed about 50%, 29%, and 40% negatively to the variation of grade point average as a measure of academic achievement among freshman students. Secondly, test anxiety resulted in significant gender differences in students’ academic achievement. Finally, female students were more susceptible than their counterpart males to test anxiety. To conclude, the cognitive, behavioural, and emotional components of test anxiety were found to be the most influential variables that negatively affected freshman students’ academic achievement. To go over the main point, test anxiety matters for students during and before the exams because of fear of failure, competition with other classmates, and friends, or fear of losing the race competition influences the performance of students.