Math Anxiety and Math Competence: The Different Components of Math Anxiety May Produce Different Effects on Math Performance

Introduction: Given the critical importance of math proficiency, considerable research has focused on identifying the factors that contribute to math achievement. Extensive research has demonstrated a negative correlation between math performance and mathematics anxiety, that is the anxiety that appears specifically when the subject has to deal with numbers. However, it is known that there are students who, despite having a high level of mathematics anxiety, manage to achieve adequate math performance. The present report focused specifically on the competence acquired by students characterized by a high level of mathematics anxiety. Materials and Method: The study involved students who were followed in their first year of secondary school. Students were assessed on two separate occasions: first at the end of the first term, and then again at the end of the second term. Based on the scores obtained in the anxiety questionnaire, students scoring above the mean by one standard deviation were categorized as having high levels of anxiety. Furthermore, based on the results obtained in the math test conducted at the end of the year, these high mathematics anxiety students were divided into two subgroups in relation to whether they had acquired the minimum levels of competence required by the school curriculum. Results: Pearson’s correlation coefficient shows an inverse relationship between the level of mathematics anxiety and the score obtained in the math test. However, the subgroup analysis shows that, compared to their peers who had not acquired the expected skills, students who are both highly math anxious and good math achievers present an equivalent high fear of judgement but a significantly higher interest in studying mathematics. Mathematics anxiety, even when high, does not necessarily prevent the acquisition of math skills. Discussion: The data are discussed in light of the different interpretations that students can provide of their state of anxiety when faced with the difficulty of the task to be solved: it is likely that interest in studying mathematics can counterbalance the fear of an unwanted judgment. Conclusions: Ultimately, results suggest taking proper account of individual heterogeneity of math anxious students and highlight the need to adopt a teaching approach that considers individual differences in the management of emotions.