We’re all familiar with the slew of emotions that comes along with studying for exams: the frustration, the anger, and the sadness (unless you’re really prepared, then good for you!). But what if we applied the five stages of grief to describe the emotional rollercoaster we go through while studying for tests? If you’ve taken a basic psychology course, you’re probably familiar with the Kübler-Ross Model for dealing with grief, more commonly known as DABDA (Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance). It seems that these stages of emotion can appear while studying for exams.
1. Denial
The first of the five stages. You allot yourself what you think is enough time to study for this difficult exam. You get through your first few pages of notes thinking, “Yeah! I’ve got this!” You think everything will be okay…for now.
2. Anger
This is where you start to get overwhelmed. There is way more content in this unit than you expected, and you start getting angry and frustrated. Thoughts like, “Why didn’t my professor teach this better in class?” or “Why doesn’t this make sense to me?” start to race through your mind.
3. Bargaining
At this stage, you feel as though you would do or give anything to have just a little more time, or a little more understanding of what you are trying to study. You start to hope that your professor decides to put a curve on this exam.
4. Depression
You start to feel hopeless. The information isn’t sticking as well as you would like it to. There’s too much to memorize and remember for the exam. You are preparing to accept your fate.
5. Acceptance
You know what you know, and that’s okay. You tried your best and that’s all you can do. Who knows? The exam might even go better than expected, and you probably will remember more information than you think!