No Difference Between Taking a Five Minute General Knowledge Test Online Versus On Paper in Regards to Effects On Blood Pressure, Heart Rate and Beta Brain Wave Frequency

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the physiological differences expressed by college students taking a test on paper versus taking a test online. Physiological responses to testing were measured by taking the frequency of beta waves (a measure of mental effort via electroencephalography), the percent change in blood pressure, and the percent change in heart rate. The three physiological responses were recorded on college students before, during, and after a five-minute paper or online test of general knowledge. We hypothesized that online testing would be less familiar than paper testing, and therefore more stressful, leading to an increased beta wave frequency, a larger increase in heart rate and a larger increase in blood pressure. Results showed that test format was not correlated with a significant difference in the frequencies of beta waves (p-value of 0.16529), blood pressure (psystolic= 0.90667, pdiastolic= 0.11270) or heart rates (multiple values, p≥0.12941). The data from this study indicates that there are no physiological differences between online and offline testing in college students taking a short general knowledge test. Future studies could examine physiological responses to different test formats, longer tests, or higher pressure examinations (AP, SAT, GRE, etc).