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MATHANXIETY–WHENTHEEMOTIONALBRAINPARALYZESTHETHINKINGBRAIN
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behaviorthatis,avoidinganysituationsrelatedtomathematics.Conversely,high
motivationcanhelpovercomenegativeemotionsassociatedwithmath.
Thecurrentliteraturestudyaddressestheconceptofmathanxietyanddiscusses
themechanismsofmanifestationofmathanxietyintheexampleofstudiesofbrain
activityundermathematicalstimuli.Thearticledescribesthemoststudiedpossible
causesofthedevelopmentofmathanxiety,alsothemeasurementinstruments
usedfordifferentagegroups.Finally,itexaminesthemainproposedexplanations
oftherelationsbetweenmathanxietyandstudents’mathachievement.
Thephenomenonofmathanxiety
Researchonmathanxietybeganinthe1950swhenGough(1954)firstused
theconceptof“mathemophobia”todescribeconditionssimilartoaphobiabut
relatedexclusivelytomathematics(Gough,1954).Thefirstdefinitionofmath
anxietydatesbackto1957–“thepresenceofasyndromeofemotionalreactions
toarithmeticandmathematics”(Dreger&Aiken,1957,p.344).Currently,several
definitionsofmathanxietycanalreadybedistinguished.Forinstance,“feelings
oftensionandanxietythatinterferewiththemanipulationofnumbersandthe
solvingofmathematicalproblemsinawidevarietyofordinarylifeandacademic
settings”(Richardson&Suinn,1972,p.512),“thepanic,helplessness,paralysisand
mentaldisorganizationthatarisesamongsomepeoplewhentheyarerequiredto
solveamathematicalproblem”(Tobias,1978,p.65),“ageneralfearofcontactwith
mathematics”(Hembree,1990,p.45),or“afeelingoftension,apprehensionorfear
thatinterfereswithmathperformance”(Ashcraft,2002,p.181).
Ingeneral,allthesedefinitionscanbedividedintotwotypes:(1)some
emphasizeacademicperformance(feelingsoftension,apprehension,orfearthat
affectperformance);(2)othersfocusonexperiencedfeelings(astateofdistress
thatapersonexperienceswheninteractingwithmath)(Chinn,2009).Itisalso
worthpayingattentiontothefactthatsomedefinitionsindicatethatmathanxiety
isnotaproblemthatmanifestsitselfonlyinstudentsduringlearningmathat
schooloruniversity.Oftenpeopleinadulthoodmayexperienceanxietyabout
mathornumbersinordinarylife,insituationswhenthereisaneedtoperform
anyarithmeticcalculations,forinstance,calculatingachangeinastoreorautility
bill,etc.Asthestudyhasshown,adultswhohadcompletedgraduateschoolor
hadaSTEM(science,technology,engineering,andmathematics)careerhad
significantlylowerlevelsofmathanxietythandidthosewithlesseducation,or
non-STEMcareers(Hart&Ganley,2018).Itcanbeassumedthatstudyparticipants
