Undergraduates' Statistics Anxiety and Mathematics Anxiety: Are They Similar or Different Constructs?

• Activity Number: 467
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Wednesday, August 6, 2014 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: Survey Research Methods Section
• Author(s): Soofia Malik*+
• Companies: University of Wyoming
• Keywords: statistics anxiety ; mathematics anxiety ; STEM and non-STEM majors ; survey research ; mathematics education ; statistics education

Abstract

Statistics anxiety and mathematics anxiety are widely researched constructs (Cruise, Cash, & Bolton, 1985; Fennema & Sherman, 1976; Pan & Tang, 2005; Richardson & Suinn, 1972). Few researchers have discussed both of them simultaneously; further, they have argued that these are distinct variables (Baloglu, 2004; Zeidner, 1991). Most students and educators, however, perceive the phenomena of mathematics anxiety and statistics anxiety as the same. This paper includes a brief literature review on reasons for this misconception followed by a comparison of the constructs of mathematics anxiety and statistics anxiety with respect to undergraduates' gender, college year, STEM and non-STEM fields of study, and mathematics background. This will add support to the fact that these are two distinct constructs and therefore must be dealt with in different ways.