dimensions together constitute a comprehensive
description of emotion and lay a theoretical
foundation for the definition of emotion (Pekrun,
2006). Secondly, the domain-specific nature means
that the non-target orientation of different disciplines
leads to the change of learners’ academic self-concept.
Therefore, personalized emotional research is needed
to reveal emotional dynamics for different disciplines.
Finally, the complexity of the relationship network of
emotions emphasizes the complex relationship
among emotions, their various influencing factors and
consequences. This includes the distal antecedents of
emotions (e.g., individual internal and external
environments), proximal antecedents (e.g., involving
control evaluation and value evaluation), and their
consequences (e.g., learning motivation, learning
engagement, and learning strategies). This study
focuses on the first two aspects, including emotion,
behavior, individual cognition and physiological
arousal.
2.2 Previous Studies on the Test
Anxiety (TA)
The earliest study about FLTA began with American
scholar Brown in 1938. Since then, there have been
dozens of test anxiety measurement tools compiled
and revised by western researchers. In China, Wang
(2001) conducted a comprehensive evaluation of TAS
through rigorous reliability and validity analyses.
Besides, Ye & Rocklin (1988) and Wang (2003)
examined the psychometric properties of the Chinese
adaptation of TAS, confirming its measurement
consistency and construct validity in the Chinese
cultural context. Empirical evidence suggests that
FLTA represents a common psychological response
during foreign language assessment situations,
affecting individuals in different age and gender
groups, which is widely recognized, particularly
among those whose academic performance and skill
development are subject to systematic evaluation
through competency-based assessment frameworks
and achievement-oriented grading systems.
It is not consistent about the definition of test
anxiety, owing to different perspectives and
theoretical bases. For example, the earliest proposed
test anxiety refers to a kind of helpless and panic
emotion experienced by individuals in the exam
(Mangler & Saeason, 1952). Horwitz et al. (1986)
believed that FLTA was a part of the foreign language
anxiety (FLA) and pointed out that the fear of tests
was a unique kind of FLA . Later, FLTA is defined
from disparate perspectives such as the source of test
anxiety, the meaning of evaluation, the specific form
of expression, the time node, etc. (e.g., Carver et al.,
1983; Zeidner, 1998). The common point is that they
all assert that test anxiety is reflected in cognition,
physiology, and behavior. Therefore, a Chinese
scholar has proposed to define test anxiety as an
emotional response based on the three components of
cognition, physiology, and behavior from a more
comprehensive perspective (Chen, 1989).
International scholars' research on test anxiety has
matured, and the earliest research on test anxiety
proposed in the 1920s provides a physiological basis
for its existence. The research content of domestic
scholars on test anxiety can be divided into three parts:
the research on the influencing factors of FLTA, the
preparation of FLTA questionnaires, and the
intervention of FLTA. The investigations into the
determinants of FLTA have primarily adopted a dual-
dimensional approach, encompassing endogenous
variables such as cognitive processes and individual
chaeacteristics, as well as exogenous variables such
as others' evaluative and availability of social support
(Ye, 2007).
2.3 Previous Studies on the
Relationship of TA and Academic
Performances
The earliest study of test anxiety and academic
performances is traced back to the study of the
physiological and biochemical changes of subjects'
anxiety experience related to test scores in the test
conditions. Not until the test anxiety questionnaire
was published did researchers begin to study the
relationship formally between the above two. Since
the 1980s, it has been mainly the aspect of
psychological mechanisms and clinical research of
test anxiety that has been studied. Horwitz et al. (1986)
reported that there was a significantly negative
relationship among college students between FLA
and their final scores. At present, the research is in the
stage of deepening development (Cao & Cao, 2004).
More and more researchers have studied the
relationship between TA and academic performances
in the form of empirical research. For example, some
researchers reached a conclusion that the adverse
consequences of TA affect college students,
substantially hindering their academic progress and
impeding their potential for educational advancement
(e.g., Shi & Liu, 2006). What’s more, Dong's (2021)
study found that there is a significant negative
correlation between TA and the academic
performances of English learners in China. Moreover,
Li and Han (2022) assert that TA has a significant