The purposes of the project were to demonstrate the use of desensitization therapy over a short term to treat test-taking anxiety, and to test the hypothesis that such short-term treatment is effective in dealing with anxiety in mathematics courses and thus enhances and facilitates learning in these courses. The research was designed to utilize…

Reports on a comparison of the performances of over-achievers, achievers, and under-achievers in mathematics on measures of general anxiety, test anxiety, and mathematics anxiety. The results confirm the hypothesis that the measure of mathematics-specific anxiety differentiates the under-achieving group from the other two groups more strongly than…

This action research project was designed to increase students' math competencies and reduce math anxiety in targeted high school classes in a Midwestern suburb. The study included 37 students and took place from September through December in 2002. Factors influencing students' math achievement included self-perceptions of math competence,…

Investigated sex differences in computer attitude and aptitude and the relationship of these variables, math aptitude, math anxiety, and scholastic achievement to computer involvement among college freshmen (N=941). Sex differences were found in attitudes, computer aptitude, and math prerequisites. Computer aptitude related to math ability and…

Investigated the prevalence and correlates of math anxiety among college freshmen (N=1,045) and studied its dimensionality based on one measure of math anxiety, the Math Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS). Results indicated most college freshmen reported low levels of math anxiety and that there were no large sex differences. (Author)

The role of affect in course enrollment decisions and achievement are examined. First, sex differences in the affective reactions believed to mediate student's course enrollment decisions are examined for magnitude and consistency. Then, to gain a better sense of their relative influence in the achievement process, the importance of these…

Administered the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale to Introductory Statistics college students. A high mathematics anxiety was associated with lower performance on a statistics examination. Classroom stress-coping intervention reduced anxiety and physiological stress responses, but did not improve academic performance. (Author/KS)

This investigation assesses the relative efficacy of three intervention strategies for reducing mathematics anxiety and enhancing mathematics performance in college students. Findings suggest that the cue-controlled relaxation technique is a potentially viable intervention. (Author/AL)

Traditional mathematics instruction techniques often cause fear, anxiety, and avoidance of math by students. Several sources of math anxiety in the classroom are described, along with possible remedies. (CJ)

Aims to delimit the possible individual differences in feelings of difficulty experienced in relation to mathematics. Shows that feelings of difficulty form their own system, mainly influenced by performance and cognitive ability; also, gender interacts with personal and task characteristics. Discusses educational implications of these results.…

A study was conducted at an urban community college in California to investigate the relationship among students' incoming mathematics skills, as measured by an achievement test administered when they entered the college; their math test anxiety, as measured by the Math Test Anxiety Index administered at midterm in an introductory mathematics…

Explores possible individual differences effects on school mathematics performance and feelings of difficulty (FOD) of 243 subjects, ages 13 to 15 years. Considers cognitive ability, affect, age, and gender. Finds that ability directly influenced performance whereas both ability and affect influenced FOD. Discusses the results. (CMK)

Discusses a study conducted to determine: (1) the initial attitudes toward mathematics held by students enrolled in first-level required courses; (2) the relationship of those attitudes to variables such as age, sex, and institutional type; and (3) the effect of the attitudes on student learning. (JP)

This study's purposes were to test causal attribution theory in the masculine typed, content-specific task domain of mathematics and examine the effects of level of mathematics achievement, sex, and the interaction level of achievement and sex on attribution patterns. (MP)

The authors analyzed the domain specificity of emotions and focused on experiences of enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom in the domains of mathematics, Latin, German, and English. On the basis of assumptions in R. Pekrun's (2000; in press) control-value theory and findings of pilot studies, the authors hypothesized the existence of a largely…