Abstract:

152 middle school students were recruited to investigate the relationship among achievement goal orientation, test anxiety and WM. Correlation analysis indicated that each orientation of 2´2 achievement goal frameworks had a distinctively relationship pattern with test anxiety and WM span. Performance-approach goal was negatively related to test anxiety and positively to WM span. Mastery-approach goal had no correlation with worry, emotionality and WM span. Performance-avoidance goal was positively related to worry and emotionality, and negatively to WM span. Mastery-avoidance goal was positively related to worry and emotionality. Furthermore, Structural equation modeling analysis showed test anxiety was a mediator between performance-approach goal and WM, between performance-avoidance and WM.. Emotionality was a significant mediator between Performance-approach , Performance-avoidance goal and WM ,but worry was not

Key words: achievement goal orientation, test anxiety, working memory (WM), mediating effect