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Teachers’ use of fear appeals in the Mathematics classroom: Worrying or motivating students?
Author(s) -
Putwain David W.,
Symes Wendy
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
british journal of educational psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.557
H-Index - 95
eISSN - 2044-8279
pISSN - 0007-0998
DOI - 10.1348/2044-8279.002005
Subject(s) - worry , psychology , fear of failure , anxiety , test anxiety , context (archaeology) , test (biology) , fear of negative evaluation , social psychology , fear appeal , developmental psychology , need for achievement , clinical psychology , social anxiety , paleontology , psychiatry , biology
Aim. This study examined whether teachers’ use of fear appeals in the classroom, attempts to motivate students to perform well in high‐stakes examinations by highlighting the educational, and/or occupational consequences of failure did indeed motivate students or whether it contributed to an increase in worry, anxiety, and fear of failure. Sample. A total of 132 secondary school students. Method. Self‐report data were collected for teachers’ use of fear appeals, test anxiety, and achievement goals in the context of Mathematics at the end of Years 10 and 11, the final 2 years of compulsory schooling. Results. The frequency with which teachers were reported to make fear appeals was unrelated to future test anxiety and achievement goals. When fear appeals were perceived to be threatening, however, they were related to an increase in the worry and tension components of test anxiety and increases in performance‐avoidance and mastery‐approach goals. Conclusion. Fear appeals appear to have competing positive and negative outcomes, resulting in both anxiety and a fear of failure, and a mastery‐approach goal.