Keeping Anxiety At Bay

Abstract

Many students suffer from elevated test anxiety, negatively impacting academic scores and possibly future educational attainment and job acquisition. Aerobic exercise could potentially alleviate cognitive impairments often accompanying anxiety and indirectly influence academic performance. PURPOSE: Assess whether, in test anxious individuals, aerobic exercise prior to an examination could: (a) reduce state anxiety (SA); (b) improve cognitive function; and (c) enhance academic performance. METHODS: Test anxious individuals (N=14, M age=20.7±0.8 yrs, M Test Anxiety=55.6±8.3) completed 3 separate sessions: 1) Baseline cognitive tests & fitness assessment, 2) 34min treadmill Exercise (EX) at 20% below VT and 3) 34min Quiet Rest (QR); EX and QR were counterbalanced. Immediately after EX and QR participants completed: 10-item SAI, Flanker & N-Back tasks, and Reading/Math SAT practice exams. RESULTS: SA was reduced (P> 0.05) following both QR and EX. SA then increased after the first set of cognitive tasks following QR (4.4 units, d=-1.16, P=0.002), but not following EX (2.4 units, d= -0.65, P>0.10). Further, speed of performance on a cognitive inhibition task (i.e., the ability to ignore distracting information in a visual array) was associated with better performance on the SAT reading comprehension exam, but only following EX (r= -0.59, P=0.025). Following QR, SA after the first set of cognitive tests was associated with worse SAT reading comprehension (r= -0.53) and math scores (r= -0.598); this effect was not seen following EX and was seen even after controlling for baseline SA [r(12)= -0.64, P= 0.014]. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with previous research, SA was reduced following both EX and QR. Additionally, exercise has been shown to buffer SA increases following a stressor. In the present study, EX buffered the anxiogenic response that accompanied cognitive testing. This extends previous literature to include individuals with high test anxiety, and provides evidence that EX has a beneficial effect on academic performance in such individuals. In addition to its physical health benefits, EX has application as a coping mechanism for exam taking, if not for completely preventing or dampening anxiety reactions. This research was supported by the Raymond and Rosalee Weiss Research Endowment from the American College of Sports Medicine Foundation