Effectiveness of bibliotherapy in alleviating examination stress on college students: a quasi-experimental trial

Abstract

Background: Examination stress is a prevalent mental health disorder among college students in response to academic life. Objectives: The study aimed to explore cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) and study skills training based bibliotherapy as an effective way to help female undergraduates to better cope with examination stress. Methods: A total of 121 students were randomly allocated to an experimental group or control group. Students in the experimental group used self-help materials, as a bibliotherapy intervention, over 16 weeks. Students in the control group received no treatment. The students’ examination stress levels were assessed, before and after the intervention using the Revised Test Anxiety scale. Data collected were investigated and analysed using t-tests. Results: There was a significant decrease in examination stress scores of students from the experimental group as compared with the control group. Discussion: The intervention model efficiently diminished the symptoms of examination stress of undergraduates in practice. Findings can be used as a reference for developing non-clinical techniques to overcome examination anxiety. Conclusion: Findings have revealed that combined CBT with academic skills improvement based bibliotherapy may be efficient in lowering examination stress for female undergraduates. Librarians can contribute to improving the health of their societies.