Performance anxiety and musical level of undergraduate students in exam situations: The role of gender and musical instrument

The present study aims to investigate the impact of the performers’ gender and chosen musical instrument on the link between performance anxiety and musical level of undergraduate instrumentalists in exam situations. A sample of 130 undergraduate music students was asked to complete The Competitive State Anxiety Inventory CSAI-2 immediately after performing for their final exams. Correlations were calculated between their reported anxiety scores and the grades they obtained for the musical level showed in the exam situations. Results have shown that the level of performance anxiety differs according to gender and musical instrument. These two variables also mediate its relationship with the musical level.