30 studies, strongest evidence first. Search and filter to find what you need — each card explains
what the researchers did and found before giving the technical detail.
Systematic reviewPreliminary
Lee, S. H., Jeong, B. E., Chae, H. et al. · 2021
This systematic review pooled 14 clinical trials of EFT for student mental health issues like test anxiety and stress, finding consistent benefit across a range of student-related problems. However, the reviewers themselves note the included studies were relatively poor quality with small sample sizes, so they call for larger, better-designed trials.
Of 14 extracted clinical trials (8 RCTs, 2 non-randomized controlled trials, 4 before-after studies), EFT showed significant clinical usefulness for public speaking anxiety, test anxiety, stress, depression, learning-related emotions, adolescent anxiety, and eating issues, though risk of selection bias was high or uncertain in most studies.
Systematic reviewPreliminary
Lee, S. H., Chae, H., Lim, J. H. · 2017
This is an earlier (2017) publication of essentially the same systematic review methodology and findings later republished by overlapping authors in 2021 (Lee et al.), pooling 14 clinical trials of EFT for student mental health and finding consistent benefit but noting generally poor study quality and small samples in the underlying literature.
Of 14 extracted clinical trials (8 RCTs, 2 non-randomized controlled trials, 4 before-after studies), EFT showed significant clinical usefulness for public speaking anxiety, test anxiety, stress, depression, learning-related emotions, adolescent anxiety, and eating issues, though risk of selection bias was high or uncertain in most studies.
Systematic reviewModerate rigorKorean
Lee, S.-H., Jung, B.-E., Chae, H. et al. · 2017
Researchers gathered 14 studies that tested tapping on students dealing with test anxiety and stress. Across those studies, students' test anxiety, stress, and negative emotions dropped significantly right after the program and still looked better at follow-up. The authors concluded tapping could be a useful self-help tool for students, especially around exams, but this is a summary of smaller studies rather than one large trial.
Across 14 collected studies of EFT in student populations, test anxiety, perceived stress, and negative affect showed significant decreases both immediately after the program and at follow-up; trait anxiety decreased significantly post-program and state anxiety decreased significantly at follow-up.
Systematic reviewModerate rigor
Boath, E., Stewart, A., Carryer, A. · 2012
This systematic review sifted through 42 published EFT studies down to 7 qualifying randomized trials, and found tapping outperformed comparison approaches like diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, an inspirational lecture, and a support group across conditions including PTSD, fibromyalgia, phobias, test anxiety, and athletic performance. The one method that beat EFT in these trials was EMDR. With only 7 RCTs reviewed and methodological flaws noted in the source studies, the reviewers still called for further quality research even while endorsing EFT's promise.
A search identified 42 published EFT studies, of which 7 RCTs met inclusion criteria; EFT was shown effective for PTSD, fibromyalgia, phobias, test anxiety, and athletic performance, and was superior to diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscular relaxation, an inspirational lecture, and a support group, while only EMDR outperformed EFT.
Randomized trialModerate rigor
Azzizadeh Forouzi, M., Taebi, M., Samarehfekri, A. et al. · 2024
Sixty nursing and paramedical students in Iran were split into a group that took six weekly online tapping sessions and a group that got no special help before exams. The tapping group's test-anxiety scores came down substantially more than the untreated group's by the end. It's a modest-sized study in one country's student population, but the online, low-cost delivery format is notable for how easily it could scale to other students.
60 students (30 per group) were randomized to 6 weekly 45-minute online EFT sessions or a no-intervention control; mean exam anxiety dropped to 50.88 in the intervention group versus 65.36 in the control group post-intervention (p<0.001).
Randomized trialModerate rigor
Dincer, B., Kumral Özçelik, S., Özer, Z. et al. · 2020
76 nursing students in Turkey who got nervous about public speaking were split into a tapping group and a breathing-exercise group. Both approaches lowered their anxiety before a speaking task, but the tapping group did somewhat better than the breathing group. The exact numbers behind "more effective" weren't available to double-check, so treat that specific comparison as a secondhand summary of the published findings.
Both breathing therapy and EFT groups showed comparable pre-intervention anxiety scores; SUDS, STAI, and speech anxiety scores significantly decreased in both groups after the intervention, with EFT reported as more effective than breathing therapy for public speaking anxiety.
Randomized trialHigher rigor
Inangil, D., Vural, P., Dogan, S. et al. · 2020
Ninety Turkish nursing students facing a nerve-wracking hands-on clinical exam were split into music therapy, EFT, or no intervention. Both music and tapping brought down students' pre-exam anxiety significantly more than doing nothing. This is a clean three-arm randomized trial with a decent sample size.
Mean anxiety scores in both the music and EFT groups were significantly lower than control after the interventions (p < .05).
Dismantling studyModerate rigorCritical finding
Fitch, J., Kimmel, K., Fairchild, J. et al. · 2019
This study tried to isolate whether the acupressure-tapping part of an energy psychology protocol (not EFT itself, but a related technique called PEAT) is what actually reduces public speaking anxiety, by comparing a version with tapping to a version without it. Neither modified version significantly beat the other or the control group on anxiety scores - a null result the researchers reported honestly. The authors suggest their modifications may have weakened the original protocol's power, so this doesn't settle the broader question of whether acupoint tapping itself is the active ingredient in EFT.
Mixed method analyses did not find a significant difference in communication apprehension scores or subjective experiences between the modified acupressure and non-acupressure groups.
Randomized trialHigher rigor
Gaesser, A.H., Karan, O.C. · 2017
Sixty-three students between 10 and 18 years old with anxiety were split into three groups: tapping, standard cognitive behavioral therapy, or no help at all, with three sessions spread over five months. Both tapping and CBT beat doing nothing, and tapping performed similarly to CBT overall (no clear winner between the two). This study is notable for its unusually careful, low-bias design compared to many other tapping studies — independent blinded assessments and low dropout — which makes its comparable-to-CBT finding more trustworthy than most.
63 students were randomized to EFT (n=20), CBT (n=21), or no intervention (n=21) over 3 sessions across 5 months; the no-intervention group had significantly higher anxiety than EFT (p<0.01) at follow-up, but EFT did not significantly differ from CBT (p=0.18), and this was the only study in a 2025 systematic review rated as low risk of bias across all domains.
Randomized trialModerate rigorCritical findingSpanish
Perellón Mancebo, J. · 2015
This Mexican university thesis tested tapping on students preparing for a competitive entrance exam, replicating the experiment across three separate groups. Students who tapped consistently reported much lower anxiety than those who didn't, but that didn't translate into actually getting into university more often — admission rates were about the same either way, and an early hint that tapping also boosted practice-exam scores didn't hold up when repeated with new groups. This is an unpublished student thesis rather than a peer-reviewed journal article, so it carries less weight, but its honest reporting of a real-world outcome not improving is a useful, non-cherry-picked data point.
Across three sub-samples, the EFT group showed large, significant reductions in anxiety versus control (Hamilton Scale: 8.565 vs 2.652, t=12.63, p<.00001 in Sample 1), but EFT did not improve actual university admission rates (65% control vs 61% EFT group admitted in Sample 1), and a diagnostic-exam-score advantage seen in Sample 1 did not replicate in Samples 2 or 3.
Randomized trialModerate rigor
Gaesser, A.H. · 2014
Gifted children with anxiety did three tapping sessions, compared with children on a waitlist or getting CBT. Tapping clearly beat doing nothing, and performed about the same as CBT — though the EFT-vs-CBT comparison itself wasn't large enough to be conclusive.
Three EFT sessions (n=20) vs waitlist (n=21, d=1.1, 95% CI 0.18-2.02, p=0.019) and vs CBT (n=21, difference d=0.23, 95% CI −0.79–1.25, p=0.658, not significant).
Randomized trialModerate rigor
Mohler, M. · 2014
Nursing students preparing for their licensing exam were randomly assigned to EFT or guided imagery to manage test anxiety. Both approaches lowered momentary distress, but EFT specifically improved students' sense that anxiety was interfering with memory and recall - guided imagery did not show that same specific benefit and even trended slightly worse on end-of-study anxiety perception. This dissertation offers a rare head-to-head comparison of EFT against another self-help relaxation technique for high-stakes testing.
SUDS ratings decreased significantly pre- to post-treatment in both groups, and the EFT group showed a statistically significant improvement on the Westside Test Anxiety incapacity (memory) subscale specifically.
Randomized trialPreliminaryCritical finding
Fox, S. · 2013
Ten college students did standard tapping and ten did a modified version, to see if the specific tapping points matter. The two groups ended up about the same, but the study was too small to draw firm conclusions either way.
One session, EFT (n=10) vs a modified EFT protocol (n=10); difference d=0.47 (95% CI −0.55–1.49, p=0.366), not statistically significant.
Randomized trialPreliminaryCritical finding
Jain, S., Rubino, A. · 2012
Forty college students tried one tapping session versus waiting or doing breathing exercises. None of the differences were large enough, in this small sample, to be confident they weren't due to chance.
One EFT session (n=11) vs waitlist (n=23, d=0.45, p=0.275) and diaphragmatic breathing (n=6, d=−0.73, 95% CI −2.42–0.96, p=0.396); neither comparison statistically significant.
Randomized trialModerate rigor
Jones, S., Thornton, J., Andrews, H. · 2011
People who dreaded public speaking were split into an EFT group and a wait-and-see group. The tapping group's fear of speaking up dropped significantly more than the group that just waited.
A randomized controlled trial found EFT produced significantly greater reductions in public speaking anxiety than a waitlist control.
Randomized trialModerate rigor
Sezgin, N., Ozcan, B. · 2009
In this small study, 32 test-anxious students tried either a single tapping session or progressive muscle relaxation, a well-established calming technique. Tapping came out clearly ahead, though the wide confidence interval (reflecting the small sample) means the true size of the advantage is uncertain.
One EFT session (n=16) vs progressive muscular relaxation (n=16); difference d=1.81 (95% CI 0.10–3.52, p=0.038), a large and statistically significant advantage for EFT over an active relaxation technique.
Controlled trialPreliminaryTurkish
Eraydın, C., Çorbacı, B., Dini, Ü. et al. · 2023
A group of Turkish nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic tried four tapping sessions to see if it helped them cope with pandemic-related stress. Afterward, students reported better coping skills — like seeking support and feeling more optimistic — and improved anxiety scores compared to before. The published abstract didn't include the exact number of students or statistical test results, so the size of the effect can't be confirmed from what's publicly available.
After four EFT sessions, the experimental group showed higher post-test scores on adaptive coping strategies (seeking social support, optimism, self-confidence) and improved state anxiety scores compared to pre-test, per the DergiPark abstract; exact N and p-values were not stated in the abstract itself.
Controlled trialModerate rigor
Aremu, A. O., Taiwo, A. K. · 2014
Over 100 Nigerian secondary school students who struggled with severe math anxiety tried either a numerical-cognition training program or EFT. Tapping outperformed the numerical training at bringing down math anxiety, with a statistically strong effect. This is a solid-sized quasi-experimental study addressing an anxiety type rarely studied in the EFT literature.
There was a significant main effect of treatment on mathematics anxiety, F(2,109) = 173.020, p < 0.01, with the EFT (meridian-based) intervention more effective (mean = 33.78) than numerical cognition (mean = 45.35) in reducing mathematics anxiety.
Controlled trialPreliminary
Boath, E., Stewart, A., Carryer, A. · 2013
Researchers tested whether EFT for presentation anxiety works the same way across very different groups of students - younger sport science students, mostly male, and older complementary therapy students, all female. It did: both groups saw significant drops in anxiety, suggesting the effect isn't limited to any one type of student. This strengthens confidence that earlier positive EFT-for-presentation-anxiety findings weren't a fluke of one particular group.
The study found a statistically significant reduction in anxiety for both cohorts of students, as well as a clinically significant reduction in anxiety for the sports science students, regardless of age or gender.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Hendricks-Patel, S., Harvey, K. · 2025
First-semester nursing students — a group known for high stress — attended EFT sessions across a 13-week pilot program, and the approach came through as both doable and effective at easing their distress and perceived stress. The abstract doesn't give exact participant numbers or a specific score change, so the size of the benefit isn't fully quantifiable from what's published, but it points to tapping as a practical, low-cost option for a famously stressed student population.
A 13-week quasi-experimental pilot of EFT sessions for first-semester nursing students found the technique was feasible and effective for reducing distress and perceived stress, though the abstract does not report a specific participant count or numeric effect size.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Chong, E. · 2024
Fifteen university students with anxiety tried a four-week EFT program as part of a clinical scholarly project. Their anxiety scores on a standard screening tool dropped by 4.5 points, a meaningful shift on that scale. With no comparison group and a small sample, this is best treated as a preliminary finding.
GAD-7 scores decreased by 4.5 points following four weeks of EFT intervention.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Bustamante-Paster, A. · 2022
Forty-five Filipino college students struggling with severe pandemic-era depression, anxiety, or stress went through 16 tapping sessions. Across all three groups, average scores moved from the severe range down to normal or mild by the end. There was no control group, so some of the improvement over 16 sessions could reflect time passing rather than EFT alone.
After 16 sessions of EFT, the anxiety group's mean DASS score fell from 16.69 (severe) to 4.84 (normal), the depression group's from 22.77 (severe) to 10.38 (mild), and the stress group's from 25.50 (severe) to 8.70 (normal).
Outcome studyPreliminary
Cyr, J. · 2022
Seven stressed-out nursing students did four half-hour tapping sessions online, one a week for a month. Their stress scores fell by nearly ten points on a standard scale, and every one of them said they planned to keep using EFT on their own afterward. It's a tiny study with no comparison group, so treat it as an early signal rather than proof.
Mean Perceived Stress Scale scores dropped from 23.29 (SD 5.59) to 13.29 (SD 8.22) after four weekly 30-minute virtual EFT sessions, a statistically significant decrease.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Lee, S. H., Han, S. Y., Lee, S. J. et al. · 2022
Thirty-six first-year Korean medical students did a six-session after-school EFT program to manage the notorious stress of medical training. Test anxiety, negative mood, and trait anxiety all eased significantly, with some gains still visible two weeks later. There was no comparison group, so it can't rule out that some improvement came simply from time passing.
Significant reductions occurred at post-EFT and two-week follow-up on test anxiety, negative perspective stress, and negative affect subscales; trait anxiety was significantly reduced post-EFT and state anxiety at follow-up.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Lambert, M. · 2020
A researcher taught tapping to 138 primary schoolers across a school year, and the kids who started out most anxious got the biggest boost in mood and the biggest drop in anxiety scores. Teachers and students also reported the skill carried over into daily life, like an easier time paying attention in class. This was a doctoral dissertation with a single group and no untreated comparison classroom, so the size of the anxiety drop should be read as a real but preliminary classroom-level signal rather than a controlled trial result.
Across a 30-week, mixed-methods classroom program teaching 138 primary school students to tap, anxiety (RCMAS-2) decreased and wellbeing (SUWS) improved significantly over the two intervention stages, with the largest gains among students who started out most anxious or reporting they felt 'not great.'
Outcome studyPreliminary
Ledger, K. · 2019
A Canadian high school teacher built tapping into a stressful exam-prep unit for 138 students across grades 10 to 12, checking their stress, coping skills, and test anxiety at three points over four weeks. This was designed as a feasibility check — can EFT actually be taught as part of a normal class? — rather than a tightly controlled trial, so read it as evidence the approach is workable in a real classroom rather than a precise measure of how much it helped.
EFT was taught across four consecutive weekly classes to 138 secondary students during pre-exam season, with stress, coping, and test anxiety measured before intervention, after the first class, and after the full training; the study was designed to test feasibility of curriculum-embedded EFT rather than to report a single pooled effect size.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Vural, P., Korpe, G., Inangil, D. · 2019
Eighty Turkish nursing students did three short EFT sessions to help with exam anxiety before a big test. Their anxiety on multiple validated measures dropped significantly, and over half reported meaningful relief in how they felt about the exam. There was no comparison group, so it can't rule out that some students would have calmed down anyway as the exam approached.
State and trait anxiety, as well as exam anxiety, statistically significantly decreased after three EFT sessions, with more than half of students showing success in subjective exam anxiety reduction.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Boath, E., Good, R., Tsaroucha, A. et al. · 2017
Forty-five social work students, a group known for high placement-related anxiety, tried EFT after a stress-inducing mock lecture. They reported significantly less distress and anxiety afterward, and interviews found students experienced tapping as calming and useful beyond the classroom. This is a pilot study without a control group, so it establishes feasibility more than definitive efficacy.
Quantitative findings indicated participants reported significantly less subjective distress and anxiety after using EFT, following a 15-minute anxiety-inducing lecture.
Outcome studyPreliminary
Boath, E., Stewart, A., Carryer, A. · 2013
University students learned tapping in a 15-minute workshop right before a presentation they were dreading, and their anxiety scores dropped right away. The four in ten students who kept tapping before the actual presentation ended up with better grades on it than those who skipped it. It's a small pilot with no control group and no random assignment to the tapping group, so treat the grade difference as a promising early signal rather than a settled result.
Immediately after a single 15-minute EFT round focused on public-speaking anxiety, students' HADS anxiety scores dropped significantly from baseline (p<.001); the 41% of students who went on to use the technique before their actual presentation scored higher on that presentation than students who didn't use it (p<.01).
ReviewPreliminary
Wati, N. L., Sansuwito, T. B., Riyanto, D. et al. · 2022
This review pulled together five studies from four countries testing EFT for the common fear of public speaking among university students. Most of them found tapping reduced that anxiety, and the authors conclude EFT is achievable to introduce even with limited resources on campus. It's a small review of five studies, so it summarizes rather than adds new trial evidence.
Five studies from the UK, Australia, Turkey, and Indonesia were reviewed; a majority of the EFT interventions were able to reduce public speaking anxiety.