Research Information System
Journal of Rational - Emotive and Cognitive - Behavior Therapy, vol.43, no.3, 2025 (SSCI)
Academic anxiety may be defined as a generalized form of anxiety observed in the context of school, creating tension in the student and with cognitive, affective and somatic impacts. In this context, the aim of the study was to reveal the relationships between attachment styles, self-esteem, cognitive distortions and academic anxiety in university students. The research group comprised students attending in two different universities. Three-Dimensional Attachment Styles Scale, Two-Dimensional Self-Esteem Scale, Cognitive Distortions Scale and Academic Anxiety Scale which is developed within the scope of the study, were used. As a result of the structural model, the direct effects of secure and avoidant attachment styles on academic anxiety were determined to be insignificant. The indirect effect of the secure attachment style on academic anxiety mediated by self-esteem and cognitive distortions and the indirect effect of avoidant attachment on academic anxiety mediated by self-esteem and cognitive distortions were identified to be significant. For the anxious-ambivalent attachment style, both the direct effect on academic anxiety and the indirect effect on academic anxiety mediated by self-esteem and cognitive distortions were documented to be significant. The findings are discussed and some recommendations are presented for researchers and implementors according to the results.