Reducing Examination Anxiety Through Emotional Freedom Techniques: A Randomized Controlled Trial Among Somali Students

NCT07257354 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: MSTH/9570
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 62
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This study aims to determine the effects of the Emotional Freedom Technique applied before exams on coping with stress and anxiety.

Conditions

Anxiety; Emotional Freedom Techniques

Keywords

Emotional Freedom Techniques; Stress coping; Exam anxiety

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Anxiety

  Anxiety levels were assessed using the Visual Analog Scale. Students were asked to indicate their anxiety levels on a 10-cm-long horizontal line. The line begins with a 0 and ends with a 10. A 10 indicates extreme anxiety, while a 0 indicates no anxiety. The VAS scale is frequently used to assess anxiety severity.

  10 minütes

• Stress Coping Styles

  The Styles of Coping Scale (SCSS) was used to measure stress coping styles. The scale is a 4-point Likert-type scale, with participants selecting the appropriate option from "not at all appropriate" to "very appropriate." The scale consists of 30 questions and 5 subscales. These subscales are: self-confident approach, optimistic approach, helpless approach, submissive approach, and seeking social support factor. Higher scores on each subscale indicate that the approach in that subscale is used more frequently to cope with stress.

  10 minütes

Study Arms (2)

EFT Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in the intervention group received two 45-55 minute EFT sessions one week before the exam.

Other: Emotional Freedom Technique

Breath Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in the comparison group received two sessions of 15-20 minutes of breathing exercises one week before the exam.

Other: Breath Group

Interventions

Emotional Freedom Technique OTHER

The EFT group received two 45-55 minute EFT sessions one week before the exams.

EFT Group

Breath Group OTHER

The breathing group received two sessions of 15-20 breathing exercises a week before the exams.

Breath Group

Eligibility Criteria

• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Turkish proficiency, willingness to participate in the study voluntarily

You may not qualify if:

• The student has coordination and language problems, any diagnosed psychiatric disorder or epilepsy

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Saglik Bilimleri Universitesi: lead

Study Sites (1)

University of Health Sciences

Istanbul, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Anxiety Disorders

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mental Disorders

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: The study is a randomized controlled trial.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 20, 2025
• First Posted: December 2, 2025
• Study Start: September 21, 2022
• Primary Completion: October 22, 2022
• Study Completion: November 15, 2022
• Last Updated: December 2, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-10

Locations

TU (1)