Identifying Profiles of Anxiety in Late Childhood and Exploring Their Relationship with School-Based Distress

Abstract

Failure in dealing with anxiety-provoking situations and stressors in the school setting may have negative consequences not only on children’s performance, but also on their well-being in the future. This research aimed to examine the relationship of forms of anxiety (anticipatory anxiety, school-based performance anxiety, and generalized anxiety) with sources (teacher interactions, academic stress, peer interactions, and academic self-concept) and manifestations (emotional, behavioral, and physiological) of school-based distress. Specifically, our objectives were to examine the correlations between anxiety and school-based distress and, using a person-centered approach, to verify whether different anxiety profiles differed in their levels of distress. The Visual Analogue Scale for Anxiety-Revised (VAA-R) and the School Situation Survey (SSS) were administered to 756 Spanish students (Mage = 9.6, SD = 1.12); 50.3% were girls. Pearson’s correlation coefficients revealed a positive and significant association between each form of anxiety and each source and manifestation of distress. The latent profile analysis identified three anxiety profiles: High Anxiety, High School-based performance Anxiety, and Low Anxiety. The High Anxiety profile scored significantly higher in all sources and manifestations of distress than the Low Anxiety profile. The High Anxiety profile showed significantly higher scores in peer interactions and emotional and behavioral manifestations of distress than the group High School-based performance Anxiety. Suggestions for intervention strategies according to the risk profile are discussed.