Correlation between anxiety scores and academic performance among adolescent schoolchildren in Northern Sudan: A cross-sectional study

Table 1 General characteristics of the studied adolescent schoolchildren in Northern Sudan, 2022 (n = 328)

Variable		Median	Interquartile range
Age in years		14.9	13.9–15.9
Body mass index for age Z-score		-0.65	-1.68 to 0.36
Academic performance (%)		27.6	22.2–48.1
Anxiety score (range = 0-21)		0	0-3
		Frequency	%
Gender	Male	156	47.6
	Female	172	52.4
Mother’s education level	≥ Secondary	207	63.1
	< Secondary	121	36.9
Father’s education level	≥ Secondary	212	64.6
	< Secondary	116	35.4
Mother’s occupation	Employed	32	9.8
	Housewife	296	90.2
Father’s occupation	Employed	139	42.4
	Laborer	189	57.6
Cigarette smoking	No	318	96.9
	Yes	10	3.1
Family history of mental disorders	No	297	90.5
	Yes	31	9.5

Table 2 Correlations between anxiety scores and academic performance

Variables	Coefficient	P values
All the scores of academic performances	0.220	< 0.001
Mathematics	0.182	0.001
Science	0.201	< 0.001
English	0.182	0.001

Table 3 Univariate and multivariate linear analysis of the factors associated with academic performance among schoolchildren in Northern Sudan, 2022 (n = 328)

Variables		Univariate linear analysis		Multivariate linear analysis
		Coefficient (standard error)	P value	Coefficient (standard error)	P value
Age (years)		4.42 (0.62)	< 0.001	3.76 (0.62)	< 0.001
Body mass index for age Z-score		2.50 (0.70)	< 0.001	1.97 (0.64)	0.002
Anxiety score		1.19 (0.31)	< 0.001	0.60 (0.29)	< 0.001
Sex	Male	Reference		Reference
	Female	6.8 (2.06)	0.001	3.6 (1.9)	0.057
Mother’s education	≥ Secondary	Reference
	< Secondary	-1.13 (2.35)	0.603
Mother’s occupation	Housewife	Reference		Reference
	Employed	11.38 (3.47)	0.001	10.26 (3.15)	0.001
Father’s education	≥ Secondary	Reference		Reference
	< Secondary	-5.7 (2.17)	0.08	-4.78 (1.9)	0.057
Father’s occupation	Laborer	Reference
	Farmer	-1.33 (2.11)	0.528