An investigation of the predictive roles of self-compassion and mindfulness on test anxiety among adolescents

Self-compassion and mindfulness are two concepts investigated in the literature in regard to their relationships with anxiety. However, there is no study on the relationship of these two concepts with test anxiety, which can be defined as a specific kind of anxiety. This study was aimed to determine the relationship between self-compassion, mindfulness and test anxiety levels of high school students. With this purpose, first the grade level and gender effects on test anxiety were examined and then the predictive roles of these two variables on test anxiety together with self-compassion and mindfulness were investigated. Data was collected from 646 (% 57.4 female, % 42.6 male) students attending a state Anatolian High School during the academic year of 2018-2019, whose ages ranged from 14 to 18. Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI), Self- Compassion Scale (SCS), Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale- Adolescents Form (MAAS-A) and Personal Information Form were used in the study. As a result of the Independent Samples t Tests conducted to examine gender differences on TAI total and two sub-scale (Worry and Emotionality) scores, it was found that females reported significantly higher test anxiety than males on all three scores (p<.05). Additionally, according to the one-way ANOVA results conducted to examine the grade level differences on TAI total and sub-scale scores, it was found that the 9th grades reported significantly higher test anxiety than the 12th grades on all three scores (p <.05). Pearson Product-Moments Correlation coefficients were calculated to investigate the relationships among TAI, SCS, MAAS-A and all sub-scale scores. Except for the relationships between "common humanity" sub-scale of SCS and TAI total and Worry sub-scale scores, all the relationships calculated were found significant. Test anxiety scores of the students were significantly and negatively correlated with mindfulness and self compassion at medium and low levels. Finally, Multiple Linear Regression Analysis revealed that grade level, gender, mindfulness, self-compassion, self-compassion isolation and over-identified sub-scales significantly predicted test anxiety. The only exceptional case was that gender didn't predict worry sub-scale.