Does my daughter like math? Relations between parent and child math attitudes and beliefs

Abstract

As early as age six, girls report higher math anxiety than boys, and children of both genders begin to endorse the stereotype that males are better at math than females. However, very few studies have examined the emergence of math attitudes in childhood, or the role parents may play in their transmission. The present study is the first to investigate the concordance of multiple implicit and explicit math attitudes and beliefs between 6‐ and 10‐year‐old children and their parents. Data from implicit association tasks (IATs) reveal that both parents and their children have implicit associations between math and difficulty, but only parents significantly associated math with males. Notably, males (fathers and sons) were more likely than females (mothers and daughters) to identify as someone who likes math (instead of reading), suggesting gender differences in academic preferences emerge early and remain consistent throughout adulthood. Critically, we provide the first evidence that both mothers’ and fathers’ attitudes about math relate to a range of math attitudes and beliefs held by their children, particularly their daughters. Results suggest that girls may be especially sensitive to parental math attitudes and beliefs. Together, data indicate that children entering formal school already show some negative math attitudes and beliefs and that parents’ math attitudes may have a disproportionate impact on young girls.

Mothers’ and fathers’ engagement in math activities with their toddler sons and daughters: The moderating role of parental math beliefs

“…Adults’ math-gender stereotypes predict their expectations and values for boys’ and girls’ math achievement (see Eccles et al, 1990 ; Gunderson et al, 2012 ). Furthermore, parents’ gendered math attitudes and beliefs are associated with their children’s endorsement of gendered math attitudes and beliefs (e.g., Tenenbaum and Leaper, 2002 ; Hildebrand et al, 2022 ). Critically, by early-to mid-elementary school, children’s own math attitudes and beliefs are associated with their math achievement (see Levine and Pantoja, 2021 ).…”

Mathematics Identity of Prospective Mathematics Teachers: Content Analysis of Open-Ended Survey Questions

“…Other factors, such as the demands of parents to continue their education in the mathematics education department, turned out to make them have to study mathematics which they did not like. It is an exciting finding, as it is contrary to what we know from previous studies, which say that mothers' and fathers' attitudes about math relate a range of math attitudes and beliefs held by their children (Hildebrand et al, 2022). This evidence is a new challenge for lecturers or mathematics educators.…”

Children underperform following “math” but not “spatial” task framing.

“…Previous work has found that adults associate math and spatial domains more with males than females (e.g., Hirnstein et al, 2014;Nosek et al, 2002). Though findings from work with children are less consistent, math-male and spatial-male stereotypes have been found in children as young as age 6 (Cvencek et al, 2011;Hildebrand et al, 2022;Hirnstein et al, 2014;Neuburger et al, 2015;Nosek et al, 2002; though see Martinot et al, 2012;Moè, 2018). Whether math and spatial gender stereotypes are dominant in childhood or not, it is imperative to understand whether boys and girls respond differently in STEM-relevant contexts, possibly as a consequence of these stereotypes.…”

“…Hypothesis 1: Given findings of gender differences in math and spatial attitudes (e.g., Hildebrand et al, 2022; Hyde et al, 1990; Lauer et al, 2018) and stereotypes that associate males with math and spatial tasks in childhood (e.g., Cvencek et al, 2011; Vander Heyden et al, 2016), it is possible that gender differences in performance will be found when the math or spatial nature of a task is made explicit. That is, girls may be more likely to underperform in the math and spatial framed conditions (relative to baseline), a potential consequence of current cultural stereotypes.…”