| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 365186 | Learning and Individual Differences | 2012 | 5 Pages |
Decades of research have demonstrated that women experience higher rates of math anxiety – that is, negative affect when performing tasks involving numerical and mathematical skill – than men. Researchers have largely attributed this sex difference in math anxiety to factors such as social stereotypes and propensity to report anxiety. Here we provide the first evidence that the sex difference in math anxiety may be due in part to sex differences in spatial processing ability. In Study 1, undergraduate students completed questionnaires assessing their level of math anxiety and their aptitude and preference for processing spatial configurations and schematic images. The results support the hypothesis that the relation between sex and math anxiety is mediated by spatial processing ability. In Study 2, we replicate these results with a more diverse sample of adults. Implications for the prevention and remediation of math anxiety and math anxiety-related achievement deficits are discussed.
► Math anxiety is negative affect at math tasks; it disproportionately affects women. ► We tested if controlling for spatial ability reduces the math anxiety sex difference. ► Results indicate controlling for spatial ability eliminated the sex difference. ► Sex differences in math anxiety may result from sex differences in spatial ability.
