The Impact of Academic Expectation Pressure on Test Anxiety: The Chain Mediating Roles of Academic Self-Concept and Learning Motivation

With the increasing academic pressure, test anxiety among adolescents has gained widespread attention. Based on an integration of Social Cognitive Theory and Self-Determination Theory, this study explores the relationship between academic expectation pressure and test anxiety. The study involved 629 Chinese adolescents, and standardized scales were used to assess their academic expectation pressure, academic self-concept, learning motivation, and test anxiety. Mediation and moderation effects were analyzed using SPSS 26.0. The results indicate that academic expectation pressure is significantly positively associated with adolescents’ test anxiety, and academic self-concept and learning motivation may operate as a sequential pathway through which academic expectation pressure is related to adolescents’ test anxiety. Further analysis reveals that gender moderates the relationship between academic expectation pressure and test anxiety, with girls showing a stronger response to academic expectation pressure in relation to test anxiety. This study sheds light on the psychological factors underlying the relationship between academic expectation pressure and test anxiety and provides theoretical support for psychological interventions targeting adolescents.