Test Anxiety: Gender Differences in Elementary School Students
Authors: Aydin Utkun 
Published: December 2018

<p style="text-align:justify">Students’ test anxiety is known to have significant influences on essential academic outcomes, and given the increased testing of school-aged children gender differences also appear in dimensions of test anxiety: thoughts, off-task behaviors, and autonomic reactions. This study examined: (i) whether there is a pattern of correlations exist among three dimensions of test anxiety that are tapped by the Children’s Test Anxiety Scale (Wren & Benson, 2004) and (ii) whether gender differences exist in the strength of these test anxiety dimensions. Students (N= 414) from 3 public schools, attending to the fourth grade (205 Females; 209 Males) were asked to rate on the thoughts (cognitive), off-task behaviors (behavioral), autonomic reactions (physiological) dimensions. The results revealed a strong relationship between thoughts and autonomic reactions (r = .57). Applying a multivariate approach, gender differences were found to be significant in overall test anxiety favoring females. Results also revealed a small female advantage for thoughts and autonomic reactions, Ƞ2<!--[if gte msEquation 12]><m:oMathPara><m:oMath><m:sSup><m:sSupPr><span
style='font-size:9.0pt;mso-ansi-font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";mso-ascii-font-family:"Cambria Math";
mso-hansi-font-family:"Cambria Math";font-style:italic;mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'><m:ctrlPr></m:ctrlPr></span></m:sSupPr><m:e><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA'><m:r>η</m:r></span></i></m:e><m:sup><i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho";
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:
EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA'><m:r>2</m:r></span></i></m:sup></m:sSup></m:oMath></m:oMathPara><![endif]--> <!--[if gte msEquation 12]><m:oMathPara><m:oMath><m:sSup><m:sSupPr><span
style='font-size:9.0pt;mso-ansi-font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";mso-ascii-font-family:"Cambria Math";
mso-hansi-font-family:"Cambria Math";font-style:italic;mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'><m:ctrlPr></m:ctrlPr></span></m:sSupPr><m:e><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA'><m:r>η</m:r></span></i></m:e><m:sup><i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho";
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:
EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA'><m:r>2</m:r></span></i></m:sup></m:sSup></m:oMath></m:oMathPara><![endif]--> <!--[if gte msEquation 12]><m:oMathPara><m:oMath><m:sSup><m:sSupPr><span
style='font-size:9.0pt;mso-ansi-font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";mso-ascii-font-family:"Cambria Math";
mso-hansi-font-family:"Cambria Math";font-style:italic;mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'><m:ctrlPr></m:ctrlPr></span></m:sSupPr><m:e><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA'><m:r>η</m:r></span></i></m:e><m:sup><i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><span lang=EN-US style='font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Cambria Math","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho";
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:
EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA'><m:r>2</m:r></span></i></m:sup></m:sSup></m:oMath></m:oMathPara><![endif]--> = .012 and Ƞ2= .016; but quite a small male advantage for off-task behaviors Ƞ2=.009. Taken as a whole, we need to seriously consider the implications of these differences and pay attention particularly to females in elementary schools.</p>