Test anxiety and the passage of time.

Three experiments were performed dealing with the relationship of test anxiety and achievement-oriented instructions to time perception. After being given either achievement-orienting or neutral instructions, subjects waited for an undesignated period of time, after which they performed on an intellective task. The dependent measures were subjects' estimates of the duration of the waiting and performance periods and their scores on the assigned task. High test anxious subjects' time estimates were significantly greater than the estimates of the other subjects and their performance was at a relatively low level. Evidence is presented supporting the hypothesis that highly anxious persons under stress experience cognitive interference and preoccupation which makes time pass slowly and results in poor performance. The implications of the findings are discussed, particularly in terms of the need for training programs capable of fostering improved cognitive skills requiring self-control.