The math anxiety-math performance link and its relation to individual and environmental factors: a review of current behavioral and psychophysiological research

- Math anxiety is highly prevalent across countries and is negatively related to math proficiency.
- Individual and environmental factors relate to the math anxiety-math performance link.
- Interventions aimed at reducing math anxiety improve math performance.
- Future work may benefit from focusing on both individual and environmental levels of analysis.
- Long-term assessments of the effectiveness of interventions are needed.

Anxiety about mathematics - highly prevalent across the globe - is associated with poor math performance. Why is math anxiety related to poor math performance and how can we reduce this link? Current behavioral and psychophysiological research reveals that the math anxiety-math performance link is related to both individual (cognitive, affective/physiological, motivational) and environmental (social/contextual) factors. Several interventions have recently been developed to alleviate the relation between math anxiety and math performance. To lower math anxiety and reduce its relation to poor math performance, future interventions may benefit from focusing on both math-anxious individuals themselves and those around them.