This year, the Higher Education Institutions Exam (YKS), for which 3 million 527 thousand 463 candidates applied, will be held on June 17 and 18. Üsküdar University Founding Rector Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, offered vital advice on stress management to students and families before the YKS exam. Tarhan explained with examples how the stress of academic success and performance anxiety created by exams can be managed by assigning the correct meaning. Tarhan said, “Just as a student leaves their phone outside when entering the exam, they should also leave the question ‘What will the exam be like?’ at the cloakroom in their mind. A young person who reduces their exam anxiety and learns to manage the exam will have learned to manage many difficulties in life.” Tarhan also made a 'three-letter' analogy regarding YKS and LGS, which bring stress along with uncertainty.
Comparing oneself to others increases anxiety
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, who defines exams as “academic success stress,” stated that individuals with performance anxiety can manage their stress if they assign correct meanings to the source of stress. Explaining how to assign correct meaning with examples, Tarhan said, “When a person thinks, ‘This is an important step as I progress on this life path. If I overcome this step, I will gain something. If I cannot overcome this step, I only lose one step, and I will pass this step again next year,’ they do their best but ultimately become accepting. This stress becomes managed stress. If they have thoughts and conditionings like ‘If I fail, I'll be ruined, it will be a disaster for me, no one will love me,’ they will give up the exam halfway through, lose the exam, and won't even be able to do what they know.”
There are 'three-letter words' like YKS, LGS
Tarhan stated that academic exams involve uncertainty and therefore cause stress in children, making a “three-letter words” analogy for YKS and LGS that cause stress for those taking the exams. Tarhan, “There are 'three-letter words' like YKS, LGS. Children are right to be stressed. Not knowing what will happen increases young people's anxiety, but in such situations, the family can also control that anxiety. When high motivation, which we call ‘you can do it, you're a lion,’ is expressed, if the child has a high sense of responsibility, the possibility of failure comes to mind, and their anxiety increases. If the child has a high sense of responsibility, the approach is different; if the sense of responsibility is low, the approach is different. If the child has a high sense of responsibility, is not very anxious, and is ambitious, if the family says to them, ‘it's not important, it's okay if you don't win,’ the child's stress will increase even more. In such situations, if the family reminds them of their positive aspects by saying, ‘you did many practice tests in the past, you succeeded many times, you studied this much more,’ the child will say, ‘my family also understands that I am putting in my best effort,’ and in this case, their anxiety immediately decreases. If the child is irresponsible and lax, the family needs to constantly try to motivate them.”
Tarhan noted that good and beautiful things in life should be earned step by step, by putting in effort, paying a price, and internalizing them. He said, “If a child does not acquire things through effort and diligence, they see them as their right. If life's responsibilities have not been taught from the beginning, if parents have always completed that threshold, if the family even gave them their pen when going to the exam, these children grow up not knowing what an exam is, being careless.”
Focus on the process, not the outcome!
Tarhan gave the following advice to candidates who will take the exam: “When taking the exam, focus on the process, not the outcome. One should say, ‘I studied this much, I probably expect such a result, if I achieve this result, I am successful.’ The thought ‘I will be successful in the exam’ also creates anxiety. The thought ‘I must be successful’ also causes fear of failure. One sits and thinks about this during the exam. However, during the exam, just as a child leaves their phone outside, they should also throw all their thoughts into the cloakroom in their mind. Then, if the person applies the methods taught by exam counselors, such as ‘my priority right now is to do the questions in front of me in the best way possible. To start with what I know best. To leave the topics I don't know for last,’ they will reduce their exam-related anxiety. A young person who learns to manage the exam will have learned to manage many difficulties in life.”
Making the child feel family support reduces anxiety
Tarhan stated that parents should also make young people feel their support and offered the following advice:
“When parents say, ‘My child, this exam is not a matter of 'making it' for you. We love you whether you succeed or not. But succeeding is important for your future. Try your best for this. If there's no Plan A, there's Plan B, Plan C,’ making the child feel that they are supported reduces the anxiety within the child. Therefore, the family's attitude here is important. The child's perspective on the situation should also be; ‘I need to overcome these exam obstacles to reach my life goal. This is not something to be feared. It is something to be overcome.’ When they say this, they can overcome it one way or another, with Plan A, Plan B. They will think this way, and if not today, they will overcome it tomorrow.”
The meaning assigned to the exam
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan pointed out that the exam should not be an outcome-oriented thought. “Instead of thinking ‘Will I be successful or not?’, one should think process-oriented. When one says, ‘To be successful in this exam, I need to solve this many questions, I need to do these things,’ meaning when a person thinks about something they can control and focuses on it, there is no stress. When they focus on things they cannot control, there is anxiety. The outcome is something they cannot control.
What can be controlled is working for this many hours, taking these precautions. One needs to focus mentally on things they can control. If they focus on things they cannot control, they might say, ‘I can't do this.’ They say, ‘I won't be successful.’ Such negative thoughts come. What increases anxiety is comparing oneself to others,” he said.
Beware of 'black ice' related to stress!
Tarhan stated that some metaphors related to stress are useful and expressed the following: “There are ‘black ice’ situations in life related to stress; when you walk on this icy road, if there's black ice, you walk as if everything is fine, but on hidden black ice, you tumble. Similarly, there are such invisible stresses in life. Instead of approaching these fearfully, you won't walk with both feet in the air. You take one step, look at the other, then take the other. Running, walking into stress, causes slipping and falling on black ice.”