THE EFFECT OF ANXIETY ON COGNITIVE PROCESS HAS BEEN AN AREA OF EXTENSIVE RESEARCH. CONSIDERABLE EVIDENCE HAS INDICATED THAT HIGH ANXIOUS SUBJECTS ARE INFERIOR TO LOW ANXIOUS SUBJECTS ON COMPLEX COGNITIVE TASKS. ANOTHER FACTOR WHICH MAY INFLUENCE THE EFFECTS OF ANXIETY IS THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH A TASK IS PRESENTED. RECENT RESEARCH HAS SUGGESTED THAT A PLAYFUL ATMOSPHERE MAY FACILITATE THE PERFORMANCE OF HIGH ANXIOUS SUBJECTS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF A PLAYFUL CONDITION, AS COMPARED TO NEUTRAL AND EVALUATIVE CONDITIONS, ON THE PROBLEM-SOLVING PERFORMANCE OF HIGH AND LOW ANXIOUS SUBJECTS. AN EQUAL NUMBER OF HIGH AND LOW ANXIOUS SUBJECTS WAS CHOSEN FROM A GROUP OF COLLEGE STUDENTS. THE JOHN-RIMOLDI (PROBLEM-SOLVING APPARATUS) WAS USED AS THE PROBLEM-SOLVING TASK. THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY SUPPORTED HYPOTHESIS THAT HIGH-ANXIOUS SUBJECTS WOULD SHOW LESS EFFICIENCY. THE HIGH ANXIOUS SUBJECTS WERE NOT AFFECTED, HOWEVER, BY VAIATIONS IN INSTRUCTION. THE PRIMARY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HIGH AND LOW ANXIOUS SUBJECTS OCCURRED IN THE INITIAL PHASE OF THE PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS. ALTHOUGH PROBLEMS WERE OF VARYING DEGREES OF COMPLEXITY, IT WAS THE INITIAL ADAPTATION TO A SITUATION OR TO A NEW PROBLEM THAT SEEMED TO PRESENT THE MAJOR DIFFICULTY TO A HIGH ANXIOUS SUBJECT. HIS EFFICIENCY WAS INCREASED MORE BY FAMILIARITY WITH THE SITUATION AND WITH THE TASK THAN BY ANY VARIATIONS OF INSTRUCTIONS OR COMPLEXITY.