Using latent profile analysis to uncover the combined role of anxiety sensitivity and test anxiety in students’ state anxiety

Frontiers in Psychology

article

Audrey-Ann Journault¹  Isabelle Plante⁴  Sandrine Charbonneau¹  Claudia Sauvageau¹  Charlotte Longpré¹  Charles-Édouard Giguère²  Carolanne Labonté¹  Kassandra Roger¹  Rebecca Cernik¹  Kathryn Everhart Chaffee⁴  Laurence Dumont¹  Réal Labelle²  Sonia J. Lupien¹ 

[1] Centre for Studies on Human Stress;Research Center, Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Montréal;Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal;Department of Didactics, Université du Québec à Montréal;Department of Psychiatry and Addiction, Université de Montréal;Department of Psychology, Université du Québec à Montréal

关键词: state anxiety;    test anxiety;    Anxiety Sensitivity;    Students;    School;    latent profile analysis;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1035494

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Background: Studies report a growing tendency for students to experience state anxiety in schools. However, the combination of individual susceptibilities likely to trigger students’ anxious states remains unclear. Aims: This study examined whether distinct profiles of students emerge regarding their susceptibility to anxiety sensitivity and/or test anxiety and evaluated whether students’ profile predicted anxious states. We also verified whether susceptibility profiles varied across gender, school level, and school type. Sample and Methods: In total, 1404 Canadian students in Grades 5 and 10 (589 boys; Mage = 15.2, SD = 2.1) from 13 public and private schools completed self-reported measures of state/trait anxiety, anxiety sensitivity and test anxiety. Results: Latent profile analyses identified four susceptibility profiles: (1) Double-susceptibility – highest anxiety sensitivity and test anxiety scores; (2) Unique-susceptibility to test anxiety – high test anxiety score and low anxiety sensitivity score; (3) Unique-susceptibility to anxiety sensitivity – high anxiety sensitivity score and low test anxiety score; (4) No-susceptibility – lowest anxiety sensitivity and test anxiety scores. The profiles comprised 12%, 9%, 6%, and 73% of the sample, respectively, and their membership varied across gender and school type, but not across school levels. A linear mixed-effect model showed that state anxiety varied significantly between profiles, where the Double-susceptibility profile predicted the highest state anxiety scores, followed by the two Unique-susceptibility profiles (indifferently), and the No-susceptibility profile. Conclusions: Beyond their theoretical contribution to the state-trait anxiety literature, these findings suggest that selective interventions designed more specifically for students with the Double-susceptibility profile may be worthwhile. Results also highlight the high proportion of students with the No-susceptibility profile and shed light on the reassuring portrait regarding students’ anxiety.

【 授权许可】

CC BY