What Works for Whom? The Influence of Problem Severity, Maladaptive Perfectionism, and Perceived Parental Pressure on the Effectiveness of a School-Based Performance Anxiety Program

Abstract

School-based intervention programs aiming to support adolescents with mental health problems, such as (school-related) stress and performance anxiety, show inconsistent results. In order to make intervention efforts more beneficial, it is crucial to investigate who is most (un)likely to benefit and under what circumstances. The current study aimed to identify whether problem severity, maladaptive perfectionism, and perceived parental pressure moderate the effectiveness of a school-based performance anxiety program, and if this depends on the level of program attendance. The final sample consisted of N = 196 adolescents (Mage = 14.12, SD = 0.79, with 53% females) who participated in a randomized controlled trial. ANCOVAs were conducted for two indicators of performance anxiety: test anxiety and fear of failure. The results demonstrated that for test anxiety, the program was only effective for adolescents with higher pretest levels. Moreover, in the subsample of adolescents with higher program attendance, the program was only effective for adolescents with higher self-criticism perfectionism, and larger effects were observed for adolescents with higher pretest test anxiety and socially prescribed perfectionism. Our findings demonstrate that even a short program can yield positive effects, particularly for adolescents with high program attendance and who experience high problem severity and maladaptive perfectionism.