Expressive Writing Boosts High-Stakes Exam Scores

Expressive Writing Boosts High-Stakes Exam Scores

Gerardo RamirezSian L. Beilock

Human Performance LabDepartment of Psychology

University of Chicago

2012 LearnLab Summer Workshop

Making the Grade in the Midst of Stress

• Performing at one’s best during academic examinations can have significant pay-offs

• But many testing situations create a high degree of anxiety and lead students to Choke*

A Distraction Account– Anxiety can create verbal worries which disrupts

working memory processes

22 x 43 =

Why do students choke?

– Working memory involved in the control and regulation of information that is currently being manipulated

A Pervasive Problem

– Distraction account central in understanding • High Pressure tests• High Test Anxiety• High Math Anxiety• Stereotype Threat

– Efforts to reduce the impact of anxiety:• Focus attention on positive self identities/goals• Distract attention away from worries• Misattribute anxiety to a unrelated stimuli

• Advantages to avoid thinking about worries(Ambady et al., 2004; DeCaro, Rotar, Kendra & Beilock, 2010; Ben-Zeev, Fein, & Inzligcht, 2005)

• Focusing attention on negative information – through expressive writing – can actually reduce the impact of negative worries

• Expressive writing is a clinical technique that promotes – Reduced ruminations and anxiety among incoming freshmen– Higher working memory availability

• Research Question: Can a single bout expressive writing serve as a robust intervention for helping students deal with a salient form of anxiety

An Alternative Approach

(Klein & Boals, 2001; Pennebaker & Beall,1986)

• Expressive writing will afford students the opportunity to off-load their performance worries in a manner that encourages insight about the event (Study 1)

• These benefits should be particularly apparent among: • Individuals who are most prone to worry during

examinations (Study 2 & 3) • And those who bring long held anxieties to the table

(Study 4)

Hypothesis

Procedure:

Pressure Instructions

Post Test40 Math Prob.

Writing Pre Test40 Math Prob.

• Our Primary DV was accuracy

Low Pressure

High Pressure

Study 1 Methods

Results for Study 1

“I don’t want to spend all this time thinking about the coming up subtraction problems because that thinking will make me more and more nervous. I am doubtful that I could improve.”

What drives our effects? • Worry sentences• Worry + Insight sentences

Summary of Study 1

• Expressive writing offloading of worries gain of insight about negative test concerns

• An aid to students when it matters it matters the most

• Can it aid those who are most prone to worry?

• Test Anxious Students: Characterized by persistent worrying during testing situations.

• Two randomized field experiments in high school Biology classrooms

• Same intervention (1 year part)

School Studies (2 and 3)

Procedure across the semester:

Expressive Writing Manipulation

Test Anxiety Measure

Obtained Scores

• Teachers were blind to our manipulation

Final Exam

30 Day …. …15 Days ... 3 days

Method Study 3 and 4

Results for Study 2 and 3

All P values > 0.60 [t(52)=2.08, p< .05][All P values > .58]

Association between Test Anxiety and Final Exam Performance

Results for Study 2 and 3

[r(56)=-.51, p<.001] [r(50)=-.14, p=.33]

[Z(two-tailed) = –2.09, P < 0.04]

Expressive writing allows test anxious students the ability to demonstrate their true competency

The benefits of expressive writing are especially apparent for students who are habitually anxious about taking tests

Study 4We lastly asked whether the benefits of expressive writing would extend to math anxious students

Summary for Study 2 and 3

Study 5: Math Anxiety

(Park, Ramirez & Beilock, in Prep)

Study 4: Math Anxiety Results

High Math AnxietyLow Math Anxiety

Study 5: Math AnxietyGeneral DiscussionExpressive writing helps reduce the burden of anxiety brought on by high stakes testing situations as well as more stable forms of anxiety (e.g., test and math anxiety)

Expressive writing may help students gain insight into the source of stress and afford them the ability to reexamine their stressful experience

Study 5: Math AnxietyGeneral DiscussionPart of what characterizes academic success under anxiety is the uncoupling of regions associated with the processing of anxiety from those associated with WM activity

Expressive writing via insight may be facilitating this uncoupling**

(Mattarella-Micke & Beilock, in prep)

Study 5: Math AnxietyConclusionSimple psych interventions can be the very effective in bringing out the true competency of anxious students

Important to give students both the:

•Knowledge to succeed on examinations

•Tools to be able to express that knowledge when it matters most.

For more info see: Ramirez, G., & Beilock, S. L. (2011). Writing About Testing Worries Boosts Exam Performance in the Classroom. Science, 331, 211-213.

Acknowledgements:– Adviser: Sian Beilock– Colleague: Daeun Park– Institute of Educational Sciences – National Science Foundation

Thank you

Study 1 Data