Research on Examination Stress and Anxiety in Higher Education

This dissertation explores the impact of examination stress and anxiety on students in higher education. The research aims to assess the relationship between stress, anxiety, and academic performance, utilizing a qualitative approach. The study focuses on students at the University of Cambridge, employing a descriptive research design with a survey to gather data on stress and anxiety factors. The methodology includes random sampling and thematic analysis to evaluate the collected information. The research anticipates that stress and anxiety will negatively affect academic performance, providing valuable insights into the pressures faced by students and their coping mechanisms. The report references key literature on student stress, retention, and examination pressure, offering a comprehensive overview of the topic and its implications for higher education.

DISSERTATION

Topic: EXAMINATION STRESS AND ANXIETY: A STUDY OF STUDENTS IN HIGHER
EDUCATION.
A Research aims defines the actual purpose of the research so as to find out all answer of
questions in a scientific manner. Aims are rely upon desired outcomes of the research which is
must for investigator to achieve. It helps in making a research project more efficient or effective.
A proper aim is highly essential for the overall success of research. It needs to be precise and
should elaborate about the topic well (Beattie, 2014). The main aim of the given project is to
examine the stress as well as anxiety level among students who are getting a higher education.
There are various cases of anxiety and stress among individuals pursuing higher studies; they are
constantly faced with pressure of standing up to the expectations of society. The current research
will try to find out the level of anxiety and stress that Students would be facing while undergoing
this immense pressure. Here, the qualitative method will be taken into consideration with an aim
to assess the relationship between stress and student academic performance, anxiety and student
academic performance.
Project summary: There are different type of secondary data will be taken into consideration in
relation to the given study. Here, as per the viewpoint of Robotham & Julian (2006), it is
examined that student retention and progression is becoming one of the major issues for the
universities and it is the reason why it is very important for them that they should identify some
measures with the help of which they can retain their students. On the other hand, another study
reveals that constant pressure of examination is raising the stress level in students.
Purpose: ‘To assess the relationship between stress and anxiety on the academic performance of
students in higher education’. The impact of stress and anxiety is quite high on academic
performance of an individual, thus it becomes essential to analyze the real pressure that students
are facing and its real impact on academic performance of students. This research can give
detailed knowledge and information to the society about the pressure that our students are facing
and how they are coping with it in this stressful environment.
Desired outcome: The stress, as well as anxiety, will have a negative impact on the academic
performance of the student.
Research design: A research design is a overall framework for the investigation. It anticipates all
the subsequent stages of research process. There are three types of research design, such as-
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descriptive and exploratory. Descriptive research design is a common method of obtaining
information; it includes questionnaire, observation and personal interviews. Apart from this
exploratory research design is used when the researcher does not properly knows about the
problem. The present case study uses descriptive research design because it is concerned with
major research problems and provides solutions for the same (Soni and Kodali, 2012). For this
study, a survey will be conducted in which different questions will be asked from students in
relation to the factors which raise their stress and anxiety level. With an aim to do the same
qualitative approach will be considered.
Principle method: It focuses on getting the sample which is based on real population and public.
Researcher can select probabilistic and non-probabilistic data sampling techniques; which is
most suitable in research project (Flick, 2014). This study will be conducted on 50 students
studying at the University of Cambridge. They will be selected through random sampling basis.
Data analysis: It involves evaluating the data and information which is collected from thematic
analysis and compiling results. Data analysis is the most appropriate tool of research
methodology and it can be done through thematic analysis (Humphries, 2017).
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REFERENCES
Robotham, D., & Julian, C. (2006). Stress and the higher education student: a critical review of
the literature. Journal of further and higher education, 30(02), 107-117.
Beattie, V., 2014. Accounting narratives and the narrative turn in accounting research: Issues,
theory, methodology, methods and a research framework. The British Accounting
Review, 46(2), pp.111-134.
Soni, G. and Kodali, R., 2012. A critical review of empirical research methodology in supply
chain management. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 23(6), pp.753-
779.
Flick, U., 2014. An introduction to qualitative research. Sage.
Humphries, B., 2017. Re-thinking social research: anti-discriminatory approaches in research
methodology. Routledge.
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