Research method

This study uses an experimental method because the researchers manipulated smartphone use (the IV), randomly assigned participants to groups, and measured a resulting effect on working memory.
IV & DV

IV: amount of daily smartphone use (high vs. low)
DV: working memory performance as measured by backward digit-span score

Mean & p-value

The mean shows the low-use group scored higher on working memory than the high-use group.
The p-value < 0.05 means the difference is statistically significant; it is unlikely due to random chance.

Ethics

The study followed informed consent: participants gave written permission before participating and understood the general nature of the study.

(Other acceptable: debriefing, confidentiality, IRB approval)
Generalizability limitation

The sample only includes college students aged 18–22 from one university, so results cannot easily generalize to older adults, non-students, or other cultural/educational groups.
Connection to working memory

Working memory is a limited-capacity system for holding and processing information. The study suggests heavy smartphone use may reduce capacity in this system, as shown by lower digit-span performance in the high-use group.

FRQ 2: Evidence-Based Question (EBQ) – 7 points

Time: 45 minutes (15 min reading + 30 min writing)

Directions

Below are three short studies on test anxiety and academic performance.

Use Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) to respond to the prompt.

You must use evidence from two of the three studies.

Study A

Researchers tested 120 high school students. Students with high self-reported test anxiety scored an average of 12% lower on final exams than students with low anxiety. The correlation between anxiety and score was r = –0.62, moderate and negative.

Study B

Students were taught deep breathing relaxation before exams. The treatment group showed a 15% reduction in self-reported anxiety and a 9% increase in exam scores compared to a control group with no intervention. The difference was significant (p < 0.05).

Study C

Students with high anxiety who used active recall practice daily showed similar exam scores to low-anxiety students. Anxiety level alone did not predict performance when students used consistent retrieval practice.

Prompt

To what extent does test anxiety directly cause lower academic performance?

Respond with a clear claim, evidence from two studies, and reasoning that connects evidence to psychological concepts.

EBQ 满分范文（CER 结构）

Claim

Test anxiety is negatively correlated with academic performance but does not act as a direct, unavoidable cause; effective strategies can reduce its impact.

Evidence

In Study A, there was a moderate negative correlation (r = –0.62) between test anxiety and exam scores, with high-anxiety students scoring 12% lower.

In Study B, students who practiced relaxation techniques showed less anxiety and higher scores, demonstrating that reducing anxiety can improve performance.

Reasoning

This supports the claim that anxiety is associated with poorer performance but is not a fixed barrier.

From a psychological perspective, test anxiety can increase arousal beyond optimal levels (per the Yerkes-Dodson law), interfering with attention and retrieval from long-term memory.

Study B shows that lowering arousal through relaxation reduces this interference. Furthermore, Study C reinforces that performance depends more on strategy than anxiety alone, proving anxiety does not directly determine outcomes.

官方式评分要点（7 分）

Claim: clear, defensible position (1 pt)
Evidence 1: specific result from one study (1 pt)
Evidence 2: specific result from a second study (1 pt)
Reasoning: links evidence to claim logically (2 pts)
Reasoning: uses/applies appropriate psychology concept (e.g., Yerkes-Dodson, arousal, retrieval, attention) (2 pts)

Last modified: Wednesday, 1 April 2026, 12:30 PM