Explaining the Psychological Consequences of Excessive Academic Competition in Schools with Emphasis on Anxiety, Social Comparison, and Reduced Subjective Well-Being

Abstract

This study aimed to explain students’ lived experiences of the psychological consequences of excessive academic competition in schools in Tehran, with a particular focus on academic anxiety, social comparison, and reduced subjective well-being. This qualitative study was conducted using thematic analysis. The participants were 24 upper-secondary school students from Tehran, selected through purposive sampling with maximum variation in gender, grade level, school type, and academic achievement. Data were collected exclusively through semi-structured interviews. Sampling continued until theoretical saturation was achieved; no new theme emerged after the twenty-first interview, and three additional interviews were conducted to confirm and stabilize the thematic structure. Interviews lasted between 35 and 70 minutes. Data analysis involved open coding, code categorization, identification of subthemes, and development of main themes. NVivo software was used to manage, organize, and retrieve qualitative data. To enhance trustworthiness, member checking, peer debriefing, analytic memo writing, and an audit trail were employed throughout the research process. The analysis yielded four main categories: performance anxiety and cognitive preoccupation with continuous evaluation, chronic social comparison and fragile self-worth, disruption of school relationships and reduced psychological safety, and diminished subjective well-being accompanied by loss of learning enjoyment. Students experienced excessive academic competition not merely as motivation to improve but as a school climate in which grades, rankings, and comparison with peers became the dominant criteria for personal value. Interview excerpts indicated that pressure to outperform others, fear of failure, sensitivity to classmates’ ranks, and concern about parental and teacher judgment contributed to emotional tension, exhaustion, social withdrawal, and reduced satisfaction with school life. The findings suggest that academic competition becomes psychologically harmful when it exceeds healthy achievement motivation and turns into a ranking-oriented, comparison-driven, and self-worth-threatening culture. Schools should move beyond a narrow emphasis on grades and rankings and prioritize growth-oriented assessment, emotional support, anxiety-management training, and cooperative learning structures to protect students’ mental health and subjective well-being.