緊張を感じたときに効く一言

　３年生は今、総合型選抜や学校推薦型選抜の受験のピークです。面接や試験の場面を想像してみましょう。「うまく話せなかったらどうしよう...」「対策していない問題が出てきたらどうしよう...」といった思考から、全身にストレス反応が起きます。アドレナリンのせいで心臓は高鳴り、緊張で手が震えだすかもしれません。

　こんな状況でもっとも応急処置の効果が高いのは「リアプレイザル」。

「リ(re)=再び」「アプレイザル(appraisal)=評価」の言葉通り、自分の今感じている感情を再評価して新たに意味づけする方法です。

　名前は難しそうですが、やることは簡単。面接や試験の直前にストレス反応が起き始めたら、「楽しくなってきたぞ！」「ワクワクしてきたぞ！」と、ポジティブな言葉を自分に言い聞かせるだけです。

　300人の被験者を対象に行ったハーバード大学の実験では、「スピーチ」「カラオケ」「数学のテスト」などで、自分のストレス反応を「楽しくなってきた」とポジティブに解釈させたところ、それぞれ17％～22％も成績が良くなったそうです。

進路だより No.30より

A word of advice to help you when you feel nervous

　3rd year students are now at the peak of the comprehensive selection and school-recommended selection process. Let's imagine a situation where you have to go to an interview or an exam. Your whole body reacts with a stress response from thoughts like, "What if I can't speak well?" or "What if there are questions I haven't prepared for? The adrenaline may cause your heart to race and your hands to start shaking from the tension.

　The most effective form of first aid in this situation is the "reappearance".

As the words "re" and "appraisal" suggest, it's a way to re-evaluate and give new meaning to the feelings you're feeling right now.

　The name sounds difficult, but it's easy to do. If you start having a stress reaction right before an interview or exam, you can say, "This is getting fun! I'm getting excited! And all you have to do is say positive words to yourself.

　In a Harvard experiment with 300 subjects, when they were asked to interpret their stress responses as positive, such as "speech," "karaoke," and a math test, they performed 17% to 22% better, respectively, when they were asked to interpret their stress responses as "having fun.

News from career guidance No.30