Brief Meditation on Test Anxiety of Eighth Grade Chinese Students: Chain-Mediating Roles of Mindfulness and Self-Efficacy

Ning Yue; Chieh Li; Shangwen Si; Shanshan Xu; Qin Zhang; Lixia Cui

doi:10.1007/s12310-024-09652-y

Brief Meditation on Test Anxiety of Eighth Grade Chinese Students: Chain-Mediating Roles of Mindfulness and Self-Efficacy

Ning Yue, Chieh Li, Shangwen Si, Shanshan Xu, Qin Zhang, Lixia Cui

School Mental Health May 20, 2024 DOI: 10.1007/s12310-024-09652-y (opens in new tab)

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AI-extracted from the abstract

Characteristics	Quasi-experimental (non-randomized group assignment) Peer reviewed
Sample size	202
Population	Chinese eighth graders at an urban junior high school in Beijing
Intervention	Brief meditation intervention (BMI)
Duration	One-month follow-up after the intervention
Topics	Anxiety Meditation
Keywords	Education
Key findings	A brief meditation intervention significantly reduced test anxiety and enhanced mindfulness and self-efficacy, with mindfulness and self-efficacy mediating 68.35% of the intervention's effect on test anxiety.

Abstract

Numerous studies have revealed an alarming prevalence of test anxiety among Chinese junior high school students. Prevention of test anxiety in this population has become crucial. Brief meditation intervention (BMI) has shown promising results for promoting students’ well-being and reducing test anxiety, but its mechanism for reducing test anxiety remains unknown. This study examined the effects of BMI and the roles mindfulness and self-efficacy play in mediating between the intervention and test anxiety. The BMI was optimized in content and form and culturally tailored for Chinese eighth graders. It includes guided meditation with relaxation music, mindful breathing and body scanning, and positive suggestions that promote self-efficacy. Six eighth grade classes at an urban junior high school in Beijing (N = 202, Mage = 14.14, 102 males) were assigned to either a BMI group (3 classes, N = 103) or a control group (3 classes, N = 99). Test anxiety, mindfulness, and self-efficacy measures were administered before, in the middle of, immediately after, and one month after the intervention. Repeated measures ANOVA and mediation analysis indicated that BMI had a significant effect on reducing test anxiety and enhancing mindfulness and self-efficacy over time. The study also found that mindfulness and self-efficacy played a chain of mediating roles in the relationship between BMI and test anxiety. The mediation effect value accounted for 68.35% of the intervention effects.

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