Objective: This study aimed to determine the relationship between exam anxiety experienced during the late adolescent period and the inclination towards risky behaviors in the educational process of students. Material and Methods: The research was conducted in a descriptive manner. The sample consisted of 581 students studying in the field of health services at a foundation university. Data for the study were collected using a descriptive information form, the Westside Exam Anxiety Scale, and the Risky Behaviors Scale. MannWhitney U, Kruskal-Wallis H, and Spearman correlation tests were used for analysis. Results: The average age of the participants was 20.49±1.52. The study revealed that participants exhibited exam anxiety above average, with the highest score among risky behaviors being in tendencies towards suicide. It was observed that males had higher mean scores in sub-dimensions of antisocial behavior, alcohol, tobacco, substance use, and school dropout compared to females. Additionally, late adolescents with higher family incomes showed lower tendencies towards suicide. As exam anxiety increased, tendencies towards antisocial behavior, smoking, suicide, school dropout, and risky eating habits also increased. Moreover, a significant, positive, and moderatelevel relationship was determined between the Westside Exam Anxiety Scale and tendencies towards suicide. Conclusion: Students with high exam anxiety tend to have a higher tendency to exhibit antisocial behavior, engage in smoking, show suicidal tendencies, adopt risky eating habits, and display a risk of dropping out of school. It is recommended that public health nurses conduct educational and counseling activities to address these heightened risk tendencies.
Keywords: Education; exam anxiety; health risky behaviors; late adolescent
Amaç: Bu araştırma, geç adölesan dönemi öğrencilerin eğitim sürecinde yaşamış olduğu sınav kaygısı ve riskli davranışlar gösterme arasındaki ilişkinin belirlenmesi amacıyla yapılmıştır. Gereç ve Yöntemler: Araştırma tanımlayıcı tipte yapılmıştır. Araştırmanın örneklemini bir vakıf üniversitesinin sağlık hizmetleri alanında öğrenim gören 581 öğrenci oluşturmuştur. Araştırmanın verileri tanıtıcı bilgi formu, Westside Sınav Kaygısı Ölçeği ve Riskli Davranışlar Ölçeği kullanılarak toplanmıştır. Analizinde Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis H ve Spearman korelasyon testleri kullanılmıştır. Bulgular: Katılımcıların yaş ortalaması 20,49±1,52'dir. Araştırmada katılımcılar sınav kaygısının ortalamanın üstünde olduğu ve riskli davranışlar arasında en yüksek puanın intihar eğiliminde olduğu görülmüştür. Erkeklerin antisosyal davranış, alkol, sigara ve madde kullanımı, okul terki alt boyut puan ortalamalarının kadınlardan daha yüksek olduğu saptanmıştır. Aile geliri yüksek olan geç adölesanların intihar eğiliminin daha düşük olduğu belirlenmiştir. Sınav kaygısı arttıkça antisosyal davranış, sigara kullanımı, intihar eğilimi, okul terki ve riskli beslenme alışkanlığı artmıştır. Ayrıca Westside Sınav Kaygısı Ölçeği ile intihar eğilimi arasında anlamlı, pozitif ve orta düzeyde bir ilişki belirlenmiştir. Sonuç: Sınav kaygısı yüksek olan öğrencilerin antisosyal davranış, sigara kullanımı, intihar eğilimi, riskli beslenme alışkanlıkları ve okulu terk etme riskli davranışlarını gösterme eğilimi yüksektir. Bu risk eğilimlerinin yüksekliğine yönelik halk sağlığı hemşirelerinin eğitim ve danışmanlık faaliyetlerini yürütmeleri önerilir.
Anahtar Kelimeler: Eğitim; sınav kaygısı; riskli sağlık davranışları; geç adölesan
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