The effect of testing anxiety on blood pressure.
The effect of stress on blood pressure is under debate. Of concern, with the trend toward fitness, is whether anxiety about one's body image may also raise blood pressure. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of testing anxiety on the blood pressure of persons taking a lifestyle and fitness evaluation test. First year nursing students had their blood pressures measured by fitness program technicians as part of a fitness test. Students then had their blood pressures measured by the same technicians in a non-testing situation. Students also completed a social physique anxiety scale to separate those with high and low physique anxiety. Analysis of variance revealed that there was a significant difference in diastolic blood pressure between the evaluative (during the fitness test) and the non-evaluative situations (p = 0.0001). There was no significant difference in blood pressure in those students with high versus low social physique anxiety but those with high anxiety had higher diastolic blood pressures during the non-evaluative situation than did those with low anxiety. These findings indicate that, while the evaluative situation appears to be a more important factor in the evaluation of diastolic blood pressure than anxiety regarding one's physique or body image, there is an interaction effect that should be further examined.
MacDonald
M
M
Spink
K S
KS
Faulkner
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R
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000523:psychology*; D001828:Body Image; D003971:Diastole; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male