The Mediating Effects of Specific Types of Self-Efficacy on the Relationship between Math Anxiety and Performance

Abstract

The negative relationship between math anxiety and math performance is well-supported in the literature. The important role of students’ math self-efficacy (i.e., their confidence in their ability to successfully complete specific math tasks) in this relationship is also established. Self-efficacy is extremely specific, however, and it is possible that additional types of self-efficacy can play a role in the relationship between anxiety and performance. This study surveyed 118 undergraduate students on their math anxiety, math performance, math self-efficacy, emotional self-efficacy, and emotional self-efficacy specifically in math to determine the mediating effects of these specific types of self-efficacy. Hierarchical linear regression shows that math self-efficacy continues to fully mediate the relationship between anxiety and performance; in the current study, emotional self-efficacy partially mediated the relationship while emotional self-efficacy specifically in math did not. The role of emotional self-efficacy should be further explored, as these findings are contrary to previous work. Educational interventions should continue to emphasize building students’ math confidence to improve the math performance of math-anxious students.

How mathematical dispositions of adult learners play a role in their STEM choices

“…Social relationships and connectedness are also important dispositional characteristics influential to adults’ learning. McLean's (2015), Jameson's (2022), and Sagna and Vaccaro's (2023) work all found that adult learners regularly report motivation to engage in learning to either benefit or support their relationships with others.…”

“…Math anxiety can begin as early as preschool for some students but becomes more common in elementary school and can continue through middle‐, high‐, and post‐secondary schools and professional settings (Barroso et al., 2021). A strong negative relationship exists between math anxiety and math performance (Foley et al., 2017), due to some combination of decreased cognitive resources (Ashcraft & Moore, 2009) and math anxiety's inverse relationship with math self‐efficacy (Jameson et al., 2022; Palestro & Jameson, 2020; Skaalvik et al., 2015). Jameson and Fusco's (2014) work comparing adult learners and traditional undergraduate students showed an increase in math anxiety as students' age increased; Stacey (2023), however, did not find a difference in math anxiety levels between traditional and adult learners.…”

“…Students with high levels of self‐efficacy in mathematics are likely to put in higher levels of effort and persistence, experience higher levels of motivation, and have increased performance (Skaalvik et al., 2015). Self‐efficacy in mathematics is also a strong mediator in the relationship between anxiety and performance (Jameson et al., 2022; Palestro & Jameson, 2020), suggesting that highly math‐anxious students with high math self‐efficacy do not experience the typical performance deficits seen in highly math‐anxious students. Adult learners typically report lower levels of math self‐efficacy than traditional students (Cho & Kongo, 2023; Jameson, 2020; Jameson & Fusco, 2014).…”