Heinrich, Darlene L.2011-02-032011-02-031979Heinrich, Darlene L. (1979). The causal influence of anxiety on academic achievement for students of differing intellectual ability. Applied Psychological Measurement, 3, 351-359. doi:10.1177/014662167900300307doi:10.1177/014662167900300307https://hdl.handle.net/11299/99634The present study examined the relationship between anxiety and learning within the context of drive theory and trait-state anxiety theory. It was hypothesized that trait anxiety (A-trait) would influence state anxiety (A-state), which in turn would influence academic achievement. The subjects were 86 students enrolled in a graduate education course for whom measures of A-state, A-trait, and achievement were obtained concurrently at three times during the course. GRE scores were used as measures of intellectual ability. Data were analyzed using the frequency-of-change-in-product-moment technique (Yee & Gage, 1968), a causal analysis statistic which permits the determination of source and direction of causal influence in lagged correlational data. Results showed that A-trait influenced A-state and achievement, but the relationship between A-state and achievement was ambiguous. When intellectual ability was considered, A-trait was found to influence A-state and achievement, but only for high-ability students.enArticle