World Applied Programming, Vol (4), Issue (3), March 2014.

102-107
ISSN: 2222-2510
2014 WAP journal. www.tijournals.com

Comparing Effectiveness of Methods of Training

the Mind and Cognitive Restructuring Techniques
to Reduce Anxiety in Students
Karim Afshar Nia

Hojjatollah Tahmasebian

Keivan Kakabaraee

Department of Psychology,
Kermanshah Branch, Islamic Azad
University, Kermanshah, Iran.

Department of Psychology,
Kermanshah Branch, Islamic Azad
University, Kermanshah, Iran.

Department of Psychology,
Kermanshah Branch, Islamic Azad
University, Kermanshah, Iran.

Abstract:
Background: The unpleasant emotional reaction to a situation of anxiety is a subjective feeling of action
agitation, and autonomic nervous system arousal is characterized by. Study aims to examine and compare the
effectiveness of mental training techniques and methods to reduce test anxiety, cognitive restructuring, Islamic
Azad University, Kermanshah was.
Methods: The study population included all students in years 2010-2011 and attended the University of Counsel
referred to the clinic where the 30 includes random manner in the three experimental groups were assigned to
control the mind and consciousness and cognitive reconstructing. Tools used in the study were anxiety (TAI) is,
research project, a pretest posttest control group. Each experimental group over the eight sessions of cognitive
reconstructing techniques and methods of trained minds. The control group didnt receive any training during
this period. Data using one-way ANOVA and Turkey method were analyzed.
Results: The findings suggest that both experimental groups compared with controls showed a significant
decrease in anxiety level. This reduction remained significant after two months of follow-up (0.05>p). Also, the
effectiveness of mind awareness cognitive reconstructing, and significant differences were observed.
Conclusion: Cognitive reconstructing helps students focus on the task and focus on self response. In this way,
students become aware of thoughts that caused anxiety, learn to express their feelings and issues, inconsistent
responses from the wreck, and methods of interpretation and labeling of emotional arousal to operate.
Keywords: cognitive restructuring, mind, consciousness, anxiety

INTRODUCTION
Exam anxiety is on unpleasant emotional reaction to a situation of anxiety which characterized by subjective feeling of
action, agitation and autonomic nervous system arousal. The person who have high level of anxiety is merge in negative
thoughts and these thoughts are focus on comparing own individual function with others, failure and unsuccessful
outcomes, over estimate anxiety, uneasiness feeling for exam and low level of self confidence this is introduced
theoretical that Mental Rumination of exam anxiety accompanied by awareness of physiological changes and body
arousal which occurs while exam taking. These changes include, increasing respiration and heartbeat, digestive disorder,
perspiration, moisten of hands, drying of mouth and shaking, fright feeling and fear and repeating urine. Of course, a
little complexity while exam taking is necessary for conducting study. However, anxiety of student increases sometimes
to some extent that hampers their performance. Therefore, anxiety with balance level can increase motives of learners
and be stimulant of them. Many of studies indicated that there are positive correlation between increase of anxiety and
reduce of educational performance because the person who suffer from anxiety, doubt about their abilities and in
situations which exposing on evaluation or express their abilities, skills and self efficacy, feel the inability and damaged
their performance.
One of efficient methods (ways) of treatment is cognitiontrapy and one of the most efficient cognitive techniques is
cognitive restructuring. The bosical hypothesis of cognitive restructuring is that exciting and behavioral tractions of
person arent due to occurrence of those events but result from interpretation of events. Cognitive restructuring method

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helps to person to focus on school exercise (duty) and to learn unconcentration on self-centered responses. In this
method, therapist informs student of anxiety thoughts and teach them to explain their beliefs and express their
incompatible responses and finally teach to them to apply interpreting and labeling methods of excitement arousal which
there are in exam situation constantly. Kennedy and others conducted a research on three groups of students who was 19
years old, and studied the effect of comforting educational approach, regular desensitization and cognitive behavioral
interventions in treatment. Obtained results show that all of three approach cause to reducing exam anxiety in these
students. Chek (2002) found that the multi stage treatment (comforting education, desensitization and cognitive
behavioral interventions) have salient effect on reducing exam anxiety. Vagg and Papsdorf study efficiency of cognitive
treatment, regular desensitization and biological feedbacks on high school students. Results show that cognitive
treatment and regular desensitization were more effective on exam anxiety Zareii et al., in research which conducted on
120 learners who have exam anxiety, found that cognitive behavioral treatment lead to significant reduce in exam
anxiety of students. Algar, Sap, Parker et al., Kennedy and Dopek, Vachek and Katez, Eergen, Motabi and Erbach et al.,
found that cognitive behavioral treatment are more efficient to reducing exam anxiety of students and university students
than behavioral treatment.
Mindfulness is mean to special purposeful and without judgment attention to present time. mindfulness means to exit in
moment with all of what is now, without make a comment about what is occurs namely, experience of mere reality
without explanation.
Base of mind awareness derived from Bodism meditation exercise which increase capacity of attention and Smart and
constant awareness (that is beyond of thought). Meditation exercise and mind awareness lead to increasing the ability of
self awareness and acceptance of oneself among patients. We can describe mind awareness as exiting style or
understanding style which implying perception of personal feelings.
Mind implying especially behavioral, cognitive and met cognitive methods for concentrate on attention process that in
turn result to avoiding reducing spiral of negative mode negative thought tendency to anxious responses and
envelopment of new view point and to come in to existence thoughts and pleasant excitements. Kbat Zin pose numerous
actions for using this method, for example long encountering with pain sense (feelings), in absence of calamitous
outcomes and can result to desensitization and reducing excite mental responses resulting from pain. Therefore,
practicing mind (awareness) skills, can result to create ability of experience the pain sense. Without excessive exciting
responses. Finally, if pain sense dont reduce, distress and suffering produced from it, may become quiet.
In opinion of Williams, in persons who teaching with mind awareness practice develop distinct changes, so that these
persons enable to talk about critical events in their past life without exciting involvement with it. This research suggests
that mind awareness have significant effects on reduction of anxiety and promotion of peace. Evans conducted a research
with aim to study the effect of mind awareness in treatment 11 patients who suffer from comprehensive anxiety disorder
and indicated that mind awareness result to reducing anxiety meaningfully. Hafman and others conducted a Meta
analysis on 39 research study about efficiency of mind awareness on different problems of 1140 and found that cognition
trapy based on mind awareness, have significant effects on reducing different psychological problems such as anxiety
and mode disorders. Current research conduct with aim to study and comparing effect of cognitive restructuring method
and immediacy learning on reducing exam anxiety. Continuing of efficacy of this interventions and possibility of
prevention, test in tow month period.
This research conduct with these aims:
1. Whether teaching mind awareness methods and cognitive restructuring are effective in reducing the exam
anxiety?
2. Whether efficacy of mind awareness method is more than cognitive restructuring method?
3. Whether efficacy of cognitive restructuring method is more than cognitive restructuring method?
Baero Kebatzin teach to patients who suffer from fear of learning, doing Aerobic exercise, Deep breathing and practicing
endurance of this feelings so that they can become free from symptoms related to these feelings. In immediacy exercise
dont ask from patient to create fear symptoms inside herself/ himself, but persuade to observe without judgment about

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feeling which expressed naturally. Kaviani conducted a research to study efficacy of cognition trampy based on mind
awareness to reducing the negative self coming thoughts, inefficient attitude, depression and anxiety. In this research,
they use from induction of depression and anxiety resulting from exams, for creation of experimental uneasy (anxious)
and depressive persons. Results of this research which conducted on no depressive students sedentary in dormitory
indicate efficacy of mind awareness on reducing anxiety and depression and decrees of negative self coming thoughts
and inefficient attitude. This change was constant in 60 days pursuit. Segal divides 231 Pennsylvania University students
to tow group randomly and teach them with mind awareness method, with aim to prevention of anxiety and depression.
After one year period, participants in learning course, suggest meaningful lower anxiety and depression and inefficient
attitude.
METHOD AND MATERIAL
In this study, with regard to nature of subject and hypothesis of research, the semi-experiment was used with pretest
post test plan and control group. In this plan, volunteer persons who refer were placed in different group, randomly.
Then, before administration of independent variable, selected tested in all of groups; were measure with pre test. After
complete the treatment and two months after it, tested were measure with post test again. Meanwile, the way to
administration of psychological treatment was subjective. In this study, as significant level of Loun test (variances
equality) was more than %5. Therefore, variances equality was accepted and we follow from this hypothesis.
RESEARCH POPULATION AND SAMPLE
Population of this research are all of students who refer to council clinic of Kermanshah Azad University in first
semester of 88-89 educational year, and according exam anxiety questionnaire, have exam anxiety score. Total numbers
of referring individuals was 38 which from among them, we choose 30 and place them in three groups: (1) learning
immediacy (2) cognitive restructuring (3) control group, randomly. All of individual who were studied were female.
RESEARCH TOOL
Research tools are:
1) Demographic traits questionnaire
2) Exam anxiety test
Exam anxiety questionnaire (TA1) (Abolghasemi 1383), consist of 25 items which tested responding to them base on
four item scale (never = 0, rarely= 1, sometimes= 2, often= 3). Minimum score in this test is zero and Maximum is 75.
The higher score that person obtained show that he/ she has greater anxiety.
Internal consistency of this test with using coefficient alpha for boy and girl tested, are 0.92, 0.95, 0.94 respectively.
Also, validity retest of this test for total sample, boys and girls testees are (r= 0.77), (r= 0.88), (r= 0.67) respectively,
which are satisfying. (Biabangard 1380).
EDUCATIONAL PLAN OF MIND AWARENESS AND COGNITIVE RESTRUCTURING
After administration of exam anxiety scale which actually take into account as pre test stage, testees that obtained high
score in this scale and have high exam anxiety (30 and higher then it), selected as sample group and dividing to tow
group namely experiment and control group, randomly.
It must be mention which conditions before administration of cognitive restructuring and mind awareness were same for
all of testees and no member of this three group dont received learning about reduce the exam anxiety.
In next stage, testees of experiment group (cognitive restructuring) participate in six session of learning cognitive
guidelines for reducing exam anxiety (each session about 50 min and one session per week). Cognitive restructuring

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method was used in this study, derived from Elis and Beck methods. This methods organized with 6 step as follows:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Explanation about nature of exam anxiety, effects, reasons and ways to counter with it.
Recognizing autonomic, irrational and irrelevant to task and exam.
Logical evaluation of this thoughts
Giving attention to own thinking style in problem solving
Discussion about own cognitive mistakes and irrational beliefs which cause to cognitive and exciting unrests. In
this stage, cognitive and exciting factors resulting to exam anxiety were studied.
Students learned how to combat with irrational beliefs, autonomic thoughts and irrelevant to task, discuss about
them and replace them with logical beliefs and thoughts which related to exam and task. Also, testees of mind
awareness learning group, teached with these methods to counter with exam anxiety at 8 weekly sessions (each
session about 50 min).

These methods was organized in 8 step as follows:

1. More awareness about feelings, thoughts and body senses moment and experience exiting in moment
2. Giving attention to feelings and thoughts and spread and acceptance of unpleasant feelings and thoughts.
3. Skills to responding to unpleasant feelings and thoughts.
4. Refrain from create and established negative thoughts.
5. Chang the traditional habits for thinking such as recognizing autonomic daily affairs, without motive for doing
works, knowing activities inconclusive, refrain or escape from depressive or difficult situation of life, having
big desire, comparing exiting situation with desirable one.
6. Become aware from alarming signs of depression.
7. Awareness of trivial changes of mood.
RESULTS
After studying 30 questionnaires in this research, obtained results suggest that age average of testees was 22 which 30%
of them were married and 70% single. In regard to vocational status, 20% have job and the rest was unemployed table 1
show means and standard deviation of exam anxiety scores of experiment and control group. Data of this table indicated
that mean of exam anxiety scores in both experiment groups in compare to control group was reduce significantly.
In table 2, one-way ANOVA show that there are significant difference between pre test and post test scores of exam
anxiety in cognitive restructuring, mind awareness learning and control group. As we can see in table 3, Tooki test
indicated that there are significant difference between mean of pre test and post test scores of testees of cognitive
restructuring and control groups.namely; exam anxiety in students of cognitive restructuring in compare with control
group, reduce significantly and this is mark of the efficacy of cognitive restructuring method in reducing exam anxiety of
students. In addition, there are significant differential differences between pre test and post test scores of mind awareness
and control group testees. This means that exam anxiety of mind awareness group students have significant difference in
compare with control group and this is a mark for efficacy of mind awareness learning method to reduce exam anxiety of
students.
Also, the results of Tooki test indicated that there isnt significant difference between efficacies of cognitive
restructuring method and mind awareness learning method to reduce the exam anxiety in students. In table 4, one-way
ANOVA show that there is significant difference between pre test scores and exam anxiety in cognitive restructuring,
mind awareness learning and control groups. As you can see in table 5, Tooki test shows that there is significant
difference between scores average of pre test and post test for testees of cognitive restructuring and control groups. This
meaning that exam anxiety of cognitive restructuring student in compare with control group, has considerable decreasing
and this means that continuing of efficacy of cognitive restructuring method to reduce exam anxiety in students, is track
able after two months.
In addition, there is significant difference between means of pre test and post test scores of testees in mind awareness
group and control group. This means that exam anxiety of this group students has considerable reduce comparing to

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control group, and this is indicating for continuing of efficacy of mind awareness method to reduce exam anxiety in
students after two months tracing. Also, results of Tooki test, indicating that there isnt significant difference between
continuing of efficacy of cognitive restructuring method and mind awareness learning method to reduce exam anxiety of
students after two month tracing.
DISCUSSION
Obtained results of one-way ANOVA in this study, show that cognitive restructuring method. Reduce exam anxiety
significantly. These findings are consisting with results of other research on cognitive restructuring efficacy and
confirmed their investigative findings.
Results of this research show that mind awareness learning method reduce exam anxiety of students. So that this
reduction is observable, two months after ending the course. This finding is consistent with results of researches which
conducted on efficacy and mind awareness learning method. To theoretical confirming of this research findings, we must
say that mind awareness method include separating from evaluation, motives or understandings to stop rumination like
thoughts in the status quo of individuals. Mind awareness learning is containing focus on attention to breathing and to let
go thoughts which produce due to deviation about attention to breathing. In daily practice, focus on breathing is used for
change the center of attention toward here and now. According Kebat-Zin (1992), constantly and without judgment
considering about feelings related to anxiety, without try to run away or refrain from them, can cause to reduce exciting
responses which arouse by anxiety symptoms. Linham (1993) also mentioned that observe the thoughts and feelings and
applying their descriptive labels, create this understanding that they arent always true representive for reality. For
example, the sense of rear dont means that there is imminent danger and this statement I am guilty, isnt realistic
necessarily. Tizdel (1995) in discussion about mind awareness, claim that mind awareness learning cause lack of focus
of mind of individual toward repeated thought patterns and also reduce Mental Rumination. According hazards theory
about exchanging stress pattern, stress is result of interaction between cognition of individual and event (environment).
Actually; interpretation of event and evolution of situation by individuals, have key and important role, stress occurred
when situation is threatening end challenging or assess as a dangerous situation. Also, Beck (1976) believed that
assessment of events and situation from individual point of view, effect on their performance. For example, if a student
has exam anxiety and assess his/her exam performance as negative, this negative assessment may be cause increasing
anxiety of him/her. As Holms believed, nervousness and anxiety, to make available possibility for poor performance in
individual.
CONCLUSION
Cognitive restructuring method helps to students to learn how focus n taks and non focus on self centeredness responses.
In this method, students are familiar with thoughts which produce exam anxiety and to express their feelings and
problems.
In this research, we ask from testees to describe situation (exam session) exactly and with full details (including
excitement activities, space and place of exam, voices, colours, ) to reform unpleasant mind images which cause
anxiety. With respect to these subjects, therapist recognize notions and irrational cognition of student. Then, with use
cognitive restructuring method, reform irrational understandings and belief. Then he/ she ask from students to remember
anxious and unpleasant mind images as always, with this difference that therapist helps to them to create changes and
reforms at these mind images and form them so that those dont be anxious for them. For example, he/ she try to add a
pleasant conclusion and outcome, to the end of image. Actually, therapist tries to help them to replace negative mind
images with positive mind images.
In mind awareness practices, individuals acquire this ability to cut void rotation of negative autonomic thoughts, with
complete focus on one by one of events which occurs now and on this place. Also, findings of current research show that
there arent significant differences between efficacies of mind awareness learning and cognitive restructuring method to
reduce exam anxiety. Generally, findings of this research show that cognitive restructuring method and mind awareness
learning method are effective and prevention ways to reduce exam anxiety and increase educational performance.

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