Navigating Exam Season with Behavioural Science: Practical Strategies for Success
If you’re anything like me, you probably don’t start studying for exams until they’re looming dangerously close, and that can pose a real problem. Beginning of last year, I decided to turn this into an experiment on myself. I wanted to see how well I could perform under exam pressure by testing out different strategies. Some worked, some didn’t. For instance, the whole “putting a chocolate on every fourth page” trick definitely didn’t pan out (and may have just sent my sugar levels soaring). That’s when I decided to put my education to good use and dive deeper. While understanding research insights and translating theories into practical applications forms a solid foundation, much of what I’ve discovered comes from my own experiences. You can trust me as someone who has experimented with the tips mentioned below and found them to work. So here’s how I’ve been using behavioural science to navigate the dreaded exam season, offering practical and actionable tips that I’ve personally put to the test (often too close to exam day).
● Frame to Fear
It took me a while to realise that while optimism is good, Optimism Bias is a dangerous thing to hold. It’s the tendency to believe that we’re less likely to experience negative events than others (Sharot, 2011). As someone who consistently ranked at the top of my class in school, I found it hard to imagine failing an exam in college, leading me to study less. One way I tackled this was by framing my future exam performance in terms of potential losses rather than gains. Instead of focusing on what I could gain (like getting a distinction), I shifted my mindset to what I could lose (like missing out on graduating with distinction alongside my friends). This is what behavioural economists call loss aversion (Schmidt & Zank, 2005). While this approach may not be universally effective for learning, I’ve noticed that I study more effectively when adopting this mindset as the exam approaches. So, from a cognitive perspective, it’s beneficial to frame things in a way that amplifies the sense of concern. Nonetheless, it’s essential to approach the use of fear as a motivator with caution, as it can have negative psychological effects. While humans are naturally inclined to prioritize avoiding losses, finding a healthy balance to use it to your advantage is key.
● Gamify-it-yourself (GIY)
Gamification here essentially means making exam preparation feel like a game to enjoy it more and increase efficiency. Plethora of studies have shown how powerful gamification is in education/learning contexts, for example, in terms of increased motivation and engagement in the learning tasks as well as enjoyment over them (Hamari et al., 2014).
You don’t need to design a fancy game interface for this to work. The idea is to borrow elements from what makes games enjoyable. For example, I weave stories and narratives around my course material. In the past, I created a mock debate between Freud and Carl Rogers to better
remember their different schools of thought for a paper on the development of psychological thought. I’ve found that this approach helps information stick in my mind more effectively in a short span of time, and makes studying feel less like a chore.
Another key aspect of games is competition, which is why I always organize friendly competitions with my friends. We have this sort of a leaderboard to see who’s at the top every exam season. Additionally, leveraging AI for gamification is now possible. You can ask language models to explain concepts like the plot of a gripping movie, make a song out of it, or
anything else! Get as creative as you can get here, and with your own inputs in designing your study material, you also leverage the IKEA effect — the tendency to value things more when we’ve had a hand in creating them (Norton et al., 2012; Franke et al., 2010). Online gamified study platforms are also great tools, rewarding you with study ranks and badges as you progress, complete with a study leaderboard to track your achievements.
While gamification holds a lot of promise, I have realized that to ensure its sustained effectiveness, you need to be intrinsically motivated. I do this by aligning my study goals with my goals in life. So, tap into your personal values, objectives, goals in life to make sure you do it right!
● More isn’t always Better
While preparing for exams, I have often found myself overwhelmed by the sheer volume of study materials available. This phenomenon, known as choice overload, can lead to decision paralysis and feelings of overwhelm (Reutskaja et al., 2020). Instead of trying to study from every available source, I learned over time to prioritize quality over quantity. The key here is to seek materials that are neither too exhaustive nor too superficial, but just right. Think Goldilocks but for study materials. It is also a good strategy to go with the core resources that professors often identify at the beginning of the semester. Prioritize materials that are concise and well-structured, and there will be no need to sift through every available resource.
For example, when in a time crunch, I often rely on my professors’ expertly prepared presentations, which strike the perfect balance between comprehensiveness and engagement. But what if the presentation is massive, like one with 158 slides? “There’s no way I can go through
the entirety of this presentation” — I think to myself. In such cases, I remind myself that trying to tackle it all at once is probably not the best idea. I break down tasks into smaller, achievable steps, and in this way create a sense of progress and accomplishment with each completed chunk. This triggers a feedback loop of satisfaction and motivation, keeping me moving forward.
Additionally, breaking tasks down enhances perceived manageability, making daunting tasks feel more approachable. For someone prone to feeling overwhelmed by larger texts and materials, this approach is a game-changer. I take a breather, and break the daunting 158-slide presentation down into six chunks, tackling each one at a time, with short breaks in between to stay refreshed.
● Use Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive dissonance — the discomfort that arises when our beliefs or attitudes conflict with our actions (Harmon-Jones & Mills, 2019) — can be a very powerful motivator. I’ve used this to my advantage by publicly announcing my study goals, whether in a study group chat or on my finsta.
It’s simple: accomplish the goals, resolve the tension. This creates a social accountability mechanism that keeps me on track and boosts my follow-through. Publicly declare your study goals and let the fear of falling short drive you forward. However, be mindful of not overusing this approach. I’ve learned the hard way that too much pressure can backfire. Reserve this tactic for when you really need that extra push.
● Choice Architecture for Better Environment
What I’ve come to realise recently is that disciplined individuals aren’t endowed with superhuman willpower; they consciously design an environment for themselves in which they rarely face temptations. Research shows that the way choices are presented can significantly
impact the decisions individuals make. Make it easy to choose focused studying by eliminating temptations and creating a conducive environment. Design your environment for success, don’t tuck your books away and set up a study area in a relatively quiet part of their home.
Odd as it may seem, another tactic that’s been effective for me is hanging a picture of (quite creepy) eyes at eye level on the wall opposite my study desk during the exam season. This way, whenever I glance up, I’m met with those eyes, prompting me to stay focused on my work instead of drifting into social media scrolling. There’s a significant evolutionary aspect to this gaze detection mechanism (Van Der Linden, 2013), which actually enhances my concentration, as it feels like I’m being watched over.
All of this hinges on the understanding that, in behavioural science, context is key. So, take these strategies for a test drive, adapt them to suit your needs, and continuously refine your approach. Don’t procrastinate when it comes to studying, but even if you find yourself cramming at the last minute, know that you can still succeed. While it’s best to start early, these strategies can come to the rescue during those eleventh-hour study sessions. Trust the process, embrace experimentation, and remember, you’ve got this.
References
Franke, N., & Schreier, M. (2010). Why customers value self‐designed products: The importance of process effort and enjoyment. Journal of product innovation management, 27(7), 1020–1031.
Hamari, J., Koivisto, J., & Sarsa, H. (2014, January). Does gamification work? — a literature review of empirical studies on gamification. In 2014 47th Hawaii international conference on system sciences (pp. 3025–3034). Ieee.
Harmon-Jones, E., & Mills, J. (2019). An introduction to cognitive dissonance theory and an overview of current perspectives on the theory.
Norton, M. I., Mochon, D., & Ariely, D. (2012). The IKEA effect: When labor leads to love. Journal of consumer psychology, 22(3), 453–460.
Reutskaja, E., Iyengar, S., Fasolo, B., & Misuraca, R. (2020). Cognitive and affective consequences of information and choice overload.
Schmidt, U., & Zank, H. (2005). What is loss aversion?. Journal of risk and uncertainty, 30, 157–167.
Sharot, T. (2011). The optimism bias. Current biology, 21(23), R941-R945.
Suppawittaya, P., & Yasri, P. (2021). The comparison of chunking methods to enhance the cognitive capacity of short-term memory to retain textual information among high school students. International Journal of Research in STEM Education, 3(1), 27–35.
Thaler, R. H., Sunstein, C. R., & Balz, J. P. (2013). Choice architecture. The behavioral foundations of public policy, 25, 428–439.
Van Der Linden, S. (2013, August 17). How the Illusion of Being Observed Can Make You a Better Person. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-illusion-of-being observed-can-make-you-better-person/
