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Revista Costarricense de Psicología

On-line version ISSN 1659-2913Print version ISSN 0257-1439

Abstract

GUTIERREZ-GARCIA, Ana G.  and  LANDEROS-VELAZQUEZ, María Gerarda. Academic Self-efficacy and Anxiety, as a Critical Incident in Female and Male University Students. Rev. Costarric. Psic [online]. 2018, vol.37, n.1, pp.1-25. ISSN 1659-2913.  http://dx.doi.org/10.22544/rcps.v37i01.01.

With the aim of exploring relationships between academic self-efficacy and anxiety, as critical incidents, this des criptive study included a sample of 310 students (183 women and 127 men). Volunteers responded to the Self-efficacy in Academic Behavior Scale (EACA), ZUNG anxiety scale and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). A correlation analysis was performed between the different levels of perceived, desirable, achievable self-efficacy and an improvement index with anxiety indicators. A Pearson analysis indicated a moderate but significant positive correlation among perceived, desirable, and attainable self-efficacy scores in the EACA test, but a negative corre lation among these three indicators and the same test’s improvement index. In other words, perceived, desirable, and attainable self-efficacy scores tabulated similarly, but as the scores of these three indicators rose, the score of the improvement index declined. Therefore, the perceived self-efficacy was taken as main indicator of EACA. The perceived self-efficacy correlated inversely with the scores obtained on ZUNG and STAI scales, i.e., as lower the perceived self-efficacy, the higher the level of anxiety. In second analyses, an arbitrary criterion allowed the esta blishment of three ranges of perceived self-efficacy scores into low (score 1-7.4), intermediate (score 7.5-8.9) and high (score 9.0-10.0). A two-way ANOVA indicated that students in the low range of perceived self-efficacy also scored the highest anxiety levels, with the well-known trend of feminine gender to express high levels of anxiety. In conclusion, students with low perceived self-efficacy are also anxious at the moment of the test, leaving for the future an exploration of a cause and effect relationship.

Keywords : Perceived Self-efficacy; Anxiety; Critical Incidents; University; Academic Trajectory.

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