Antecedents of baccalaureate exam anxiety: testing a model of structural links by path analysis

Due to its importance for an individual's education and professional career, the baccalaureate is a source of stress for many high school students. The study aimed to test a model of the links between baccalaureate anxiety, test anxiety (as a situation-specific dispositional trait), attitude toward school, and attitude toward baccalaureate. Several measuring instruments were used. The testing of working hypotheses was performed by path analysis using AMOS 16.0. The results were discussed in the context of the school counsellors’ work with the students experiencing evaluative situation-related stress. Some suggestions for the improvement of test-related stress management are also presented.