TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title page i
Approval ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgements iv
Abstract vi
Table of Contents vii
List of Tables ix
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the study 1
Statement of the problem 13
Research questions 15
Research Hypotheses 17
Purpose of the study 19
Significance of the Study 19
Scope of the Study 22
Operational Definition of Terms 22
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE REVIEWED
Introduction 24
Nature and meaning of anxiety 25
Concept of Academic Anxiety 32
Theories of Anxiety 34
Types of Anxiety 39
Causes of Anxiety 47
Effect of Anxiety 53
Symptoms of Anxiety 54
Fight and Flight Symptom 58
Experience of Tertiary institution students on Needs 60
Factors Influencing students’ performance 65
Separation from Family and Natural support System 68
Reluctance to participate in class discussions due to
lack of confidence in English ability 69
Summary of Review of the Related Literature 70
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
Introduction 73
Research Design 73
Instrumentation 76
Pilot Testing 77
Psychometric properties of the Instrument 77
Reliability of the Instrument 77
Validity of the Instrument 78
Procedure for Administration and Data Collection 80
Data Analysis Technique 81
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULT
Introduction 88
Hypotheses Testing 88
Summary of Finding 95
CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Introduction 97
Discussions 97
Conclusion 102
Implication of the finding 104
Recommendations 105
References 106
Appendix 110
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Distribution of respondents based on
Gender 83
Table 2: Distribution of respondents’ based on
institution 83
Table 3: Distribution of respondents based on
marital status 84
Table 4: Distribution of respondents based on age 85
Table 5: Distribution of respondents based on mode
of residence 85
Table 6: Distribution of Respondents based on
Religion 86
Table 7: Mean and Rank order of respondents on
the causes of academic related Anxiety 87
Table 8: Mean, standard Deviation and t-value of
respondents on the causes of academic
related anxiety based on Gender 89
Table 9: Means, standard deviation and t-value of
respondents on the causes of academic
related anxiety by marital status 90
Table 10: Means, standard Deviation and t-value of
respondents on the causes of academic
related anxiety on the basis of age 91
Table 11: Mean, Standard Deviations and t-value of
respondents on the causes of academic
related anxiety on the basis of mode of
residence 92
Table 12: Mean, Standard Deviation and t-value of
Respondents on the causes of Academic
Related Anxiety on the basis of Religion 93
Table 13: Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) Results
comparing responses on causes of academic
related anxiety on the basis of institution 94
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Problem
Anxiety is one of the characteristic of human beings. Hence, to a certain extent, it is not necessarily pathological but on the contrary can be a strong motivation force towards growth. Anxiety results from the need to make rational choice without clear guidelines and without knowing what the outcome will be and from being aware that people were ultimately responsible for the consequences of our action (Covey, 1995). Anxiety usually occur when there is immediate threat to a person’s safely or well being.
Anxiety makes a person to want to escapes an anxious situation fast (Covey, 1995). The heart beats quickly, the body might begin to perspire and “butter flies” in the stomach soon follow. However, a little bit of anxiety can actually help people stay alert and focused (Taylor & Francis, 2003). Anxiety is a basic human emotion consisting of fear and uncertainly that typically appears when an individual perceives an event as being a threat to the ego or self esteem (Samson, 1998).
Samson (1998) defined anxiety as emotional stressful condition, within the organism. The deletenous effects of anxieties permeate both the mind and the body and if not controlled could hinder the functioning of the entire organism. Akinade (2005) defined anxiety as a phenomenological state of uneasiness or tension. From the external frame of reference anxiety is a state in which the incongruence between the concept of the self and the total experience of the individual causes emotional unbalance. Anxiety is a pervasive and unpleasant feeling of tension, dread, apprehension and impending disaster (Taylor & Francis, 1999) in the otherhand, fear is a response to a clear and present danger. The anxiety is often a response to an undefined conflict or unknown threat, which may stem from interact conflicts, feeling of insecurity or forbidden impulses. In both fear and anxiety, the body mobilizes itself to meet the threat and the muscles become tense, breathing is faster and the heart beats mere rapidly (Corsini, 1999).
