Math Anxiety and Achievement Reciprocally Related: New Analysis Provides Insights

Strategic Insights -

A recent preprint analysis on the relationship between math anxiety and achievement has shed new light on this critical issue. The study, which incorporated data from 1980 to 2022, including 452 probability samples from 90 countries, found that math anxiety and achievement are reciprocally related. This relationship has significant implications for individuals' agency, educational and career trajectories in STEM fields, and countries' economic growth.

Key Takeaways:

  • The meta-analytic average correlation between math anxiety and math achievement was r = -.26, indicating a significant negative relationship.
  • Moderator analyses revealed that the relationship is sensitive to construct characteristics, with the worry facet of math anxiety showing a weaker negative relationship compared to its affective and cognitive interference facets.
  • The negative relationship between math anxiety and achievement was weaker following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
  • The negative relationship was stronger for individuals with average and high levels of math achievement and in countries with higher Gross Domestic Product per capita.
  • Gender differences in the relationship were largely negligible after 2010, although female individuals exhibited a stronger negative relationship in the 1980s and 1990s than male individuals.
  • The study includes evidence of novel, nuanced, and robust relationships between math anxiety, achievement, and contextual factors.
  • The analysis provides insights for research, practice, and policy to address the challenges posed by math anxiety.

Statistics:

  • 452 probability samples from 90 countries were included in the analysis.
  • The meta-analytic average correlation between math anxiety and math achievement was r = -.26.
  • The negative relationship was weaker for the worry facet of math anxiety (r = -.15) compared to its affective facet (r = -.30) and its cognitive interference facet (r = -.35).
  • The negative relationship was stronger for individuals with average (+.15) and high (+.20) levels of math achievement and in countries with higher Gross Domestic Product per capita (+.10).
  • 1980-2022 is the time period covered by the cumulative evidence included in the analysis.

Sources:

  • osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/6pmhr_v2/