Cognitive correlates of performance in advanced mathematics

Background. Much research has been devoted to understanding cognitive correlates of elementary mathematics performance, but little such research has been done for advanced mathematics (e.g., modern algebra, statistics, and mathematical logic). Aims. To promote mathematical knowledge among college students, it is necessary to understand what factors (including cognitive factors) are important for acquiring advanced mathematics. Samples. We recruited 80 undergraduates from four universities in Beijing. Methods. The current study investigated the associations between students’ performance on a test of advanced mathematics and a battery of 17 cognitive tasks on basic numerical processing, complex numerical processing, spatial abilities, language abilities, and general cognitive processing. Results. The results showed that spatial abilities were significantly correlated with performance in advanced mathematics after controlling for other factors. In addition, certain language abilities (i.e., comprehension of words and sentences) also made unique contributions. In contrast, basic numerical processing and computation were generally not correlated with performance in advanced mathematics. Conclusions. Results suggest that spatial abilities and language comprehension, but not basic numerical processing, may play an important role in advanced mathematics. These results are discussed in terms of their theoretical significance and practical implications.     

Effects of anxiety on attentional allocation and task performance: An information processing analysis

An information processing signal detection methodology was employed to examine attentional allocation and its correlates in both normal comparison (NC) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) participants. In particular, the impact of neutral distractor and negative feedback cues on performance of an attention vigilance task was investigated. Individuals with GAD (N = 15) evidenced impaired performance on an attention vigilance task relative to NC participants (N = 15) when neutral distractor cues were presented. Contrary to prediction, no group differences in performance were detected under conditions in which participants were presented negative feedback cues they were told were relevant to their performance. Instead, GAD participants exhibited improvement during the experimental task such that their performance was equivalent to NC participants. Across trials, the clinically anxious group endorsed significantly higher levels of worry and negative affectivity; however, they failed to respond with concomitant physical arousal (e.g. increased muscle tension). These data are discussed within the context of Eysenck and Calvo's (1992, Cognition and Emotion, 6, 409–434) processing efficiency theory. Additionally, the results of this investigation provide support for Barlow's (1988, Anxiety and its disorders: The nature and treatment of anxiety and panic) conceptualization of anxiety as requiring the interaction of cognitive schema and physiological arousal.     

成就目标定向与小学生数学学习投入的关系:学业拖延和数学焦虑的中介作用

采用问卷法对708名小学高年级学生进行调查,以考察成就目标定向、学业拖延、数学焦虑与数学学习投入之间的关系,结果显示：（1）掌握定向和表现-接近定向均能直接正向预测数学学习投入,而表现-回避定向的直接预测作用不显著;（2）掌握定向、表现-接近定向和表现-回避定向均能通过学业拖延来间接预测数学学习投入;（3）掌握定向和表现-回避定向均能通过数学焦虑来间接预测数学学习投入,但表现-接近定向不能通过数学焦虑来间接预测数学学习投入;（4）三种成就目标定向均能通过学业拖延经数学焦虑的多重中介作用来预测数学学习投入。这表明成就目标定向不仅能直接预测,还能通过学业拖延和数学焦虑的多重中介作用,来间接预测小学生数学学习投入。     

小学儿童数学焦虑的潜在类别转变及其父母教育卷入效应：3年纵向考察

研究采用潜在转变分析考察小学儿童数学焦虑的类别转变以及父母教育卷入在小学儿童数学焦虑类别转变中的作用。以1720名三、四年级儿童为被试, 对其数学焦虑和感知到的父母教育卷入进行3次追踪, 每次间隔1年。结果表明：(1)小学儿童数学焦虑存在低数学焦虑组、高数学评估焦虑组和高数学获得焦虑组3种不同类别; (2)随时间的推移, 高数学评估焦虑组倾向于向低数学焦虑组转变, 高数学获得焦虑组倾向于向高数学评估焦虑组转变, 而低数学焦虑组稳定性较强; (3)父亲/母亲教育卷入对儿童数学焦虑类别转变的预测作用, 因不同的数学焦虑类别而异。上述发现为深入理解数学焦虑的形成机制以及干预措施的制定提供了重要参考。     

数学焦虑对工作记忆子系统及数学心算的影响分析

本研究从工作记忆容量的角度入手,探讨数学焦虑对工作记忆子系统及数学心算成绩的影响,并寻求三者之间关系的理论解释。本研究为3×2×2混合实验设计,即三组被试（高、中、低数学焦虑组）、工作记忆两个子系统（言语工作记忆和视空间工作记忆）和两种数学心算任务难度,并记录数学心算的反应时和正确率作为其成绩指标。结果表明在要求较高工作记忆容量的数学心算任务中,数学焦虑通过言语工作记忆和视空间工作记忆都会对数学心算成绩产生影响,其中视空间工作记忆是数学焦虑与复杂数学心算反应时之间的中介变量。     

Moderating Effects of Mathematics Anxiety on the Effectiveness of Explicit Timing

Explicit timing is an empirically validated intervention to increase problem completion rates by exposing individuals to a stopwatch and explicitly telling them of the time limit for the assignment. Though explicit timing has proven to be effective for groups of students, some students may not respond well to explicit timing based on factors such as mathematics anxiety. The present study examined the effects of explicit timing on mathematics performance for 81 fourth and fifth graders with differing levels of mathematics anxiety. Students completed more digits correct during explicit timing as compared to baseline and control. Additionally, results indicated there was a significant linear relationship between mathematics anxiety and mathematics performance. Students with low and medium mathematics anxiety completed more digits correct with higher accuracy than students with high mathematics anxiety. Lastly, digits correct and accuracy remained consistent during baseline, control, and explicit timing when condition and anxiety level were both considered. Educational professionals must be cognizant not only of academic variables impacting students learning, but also mental health variables, such as mathematics anxiety, in order to provide a comprehensive treatment package capable of ameliorating academic difficulties.     

Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial of the Student Success Skills Program on Grade 5 Students’ Academic and Behavioral Outcomes

A randomized controlled trial of Student Success Skills (SSS) was conducted to determine the effect of the classroom program on Grade 5 students’ (N = 4,305) standardized test scores and proximal socioemotional variables associated with academic achievement. The SSS program was delivered by school counselors and reinforced through cuing and coaching by classroom teachers, which reflects the advocating student‐within‐environment approach to school counseling (Lemberger‐Truelove & Bowers, 2018). Hierarchical linear modeling analyses revealed the SSS program affected the treatment students’ behavioral engagement, disruption, assertion, cooperation, and test anxiety but did not result in a statistically significant difference on the participants’ reading and mathematics test scores. Implications for practice and further research are discussed.     

Performance on creativity measures with examination‐taking instructions intended to induce high or low levels of test anxiety

The major purpose of this investigation was to ascertain whether differential levels of performance on three tests of creativity portraying divergent production of verbal (semantic), figural (visual), and mathematical (symbolic) responses would be associated with two sets of test‐taking instructions: (a) one intended to induce a relatively high level of anxiety or stress and (b) the other designed to minimize the degree of anxiety or stress in the testing experience. Participants were 132 private secondary school students (82 females and 50 males) in a college preparatory program who were divided into experimental and control groups. On the basis of three univariate four‐way factorial designs at each of two levels per variable (treatment x sex x test anxiety x mathematics anxiety) with the pretest serving as a covariate, it was observed that only in the instance of a mathematics fluency test did the experimental group exposed to anxiety‐inducing test‐taking instructions achieve a significantly lower mean score on the posttest than did the control group that had been administered instructions intended to minimize anxiety (p < .001). A marginally significant interaction occurred between gender and mathematics anxiety on the mathematics fluency test with highly‐anxious males showing a greater decrement in performance than highly‐anxious females when exposed to anxiety‐inducing instructions. The results were interpreted primarily within a conceptual framework developed by Tobias (1985), who proposed an integration of cognitive capacity and interference as explanatory constructs for decrements in the performance of tasks involving anxiety.     

A causal model of mathematics performance in early adolescence: the role of sex

Using path analysis, the present investigation was done to clarify possible causal linkages among general scholastic aptitude, academic achievement in mathematics, self-concept of ability, and performance on a mathematics examination. Subjects were 122 eighth-grade students who completed a mathematics examination as well as a measure of self-concept of ability. Aptitude and achievement measures were obtained from school records. Analysis showed sex differences in prediction of performance on the mathematics examination. For boys, this performance could be predicted from scholastic aptitude and previous achievement in mathematics. For girls, performance only could be predicted from previous achievement in mathematics. These results indicate that the direction, strength, and magnitude of relations among these variables differed for boys and girls, while mean levels of performance did not.     

Predicting post-event processing in social anxiety disorder following two prototypical social situations: State variables and dispositional determinants

This study investigated self-reported state (anxiety, physical symptoms, cognitions, internally focused attention, safety behaviors, social performance) and trait (social anxiety, depressive symptoms, dysfunctional self-consciousness) predictors of post-event processing (PEP) subsequent to two social situations (interaction, speech) in participants with a primary diagnosis of social anxiety disorder (SAD) and healthy controls (HC). The speech triggered significantly more intense PEP, especially in SAD. Regardless of the type of social situation, PEP was best predicted by situational anxiety and dysfunctional cognitions among the state variables. If only trait variables were considered, PEP following both situations was accounted for by trait social anxiety. In addition, dysfunctional self-consciousness contributed to PEP-speech. If state and trait variables were jointly considered, for both situations, situational anxiety and dysfunctional cognitions were confirmed as the most powerful PEP predictors above and beyond trait social anxiety (interaction) and dysfunctional self-consciousness (speech). Hence, PEP as assessed on the day after a social situation seems to be mainly determined by state variables. Trait social anxiety and dysfunctional self-consciousness also significantly contribute to PEP depending on the type of social situation. The present findings support dysfunctional cognitions as a core cognitive mechanism for the maintenance of SAD. Implications for treatment are discussed.     

Fear of Hypoglycemia and Self Reported Posttraumatic Stress in Adults with Type I Diabetes Treated by Intensive Regimens

This study investigated the prevalence of hypoglycemic fear (FH) and hypoglycemia-specific posttraumatic stress (PTS) among individuals with Type I diabetes. Over 25% of participants met diagnostic criteria for current PTSD. High percentages of participants endorsed PTS symptom clusters, suggesting that individuals may be experiencing distress without necessarily meeting diagnostic criteria. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that perceived threat of death from hypoglycemia and FH were significantly related to PTS. Number of recent hypoglycemic episodes did not predict PTS/PTSD. Depression and nonspecific anxiety did not contribute to the statistical prediction of PTSD, suggesting that symptomatology endorsed represents hypoglycemia-specific anxiety rather than global psychological distress. The hypothesis that greater PTS symptomatology would relate to poorer glycemic control was unsubstantiated. Perceived death-threat from hypoglycemia and nonspecific anxiety were the only variables that contributed to prediction of glycemic control, suggesting that PTS did not represent a significant barrier for glycemic control in this sample.     

自尊与社交焦虑的关系：基于中国学生群体的元分析

运用元分析方法探讨自尊与社交焦虑的关系。经过文献检索和筛选, 共纳入原始文献58篇, 含58个独立样本, 被试总数达32181名。根据同质性检验结果, 选择随机效应模型分析发现, 自尊与社交焦虑存在中等程度的负相关(r = -0.35, 95%CI为[-0.39, -0.31]), 社交焦虑测量工具类型能够显著调节两者的关系, 但性别和被试类型对二者的关系不存在显著的调节效应。结果表明个体的自尊水平与社交焦虑关系密切, 支持了自尊的恐惧管理理论和社交焦虑认知理论。未来应开展纵向研究或实验研究来揭示自尊与社交焦虑的因果关系。     

GENDER COMPARISONS OF MATHEMATICS ATTITUDES AND AFFECT

This article reports the complex results of meta-analyses of gender differences in attitudes and affect specific to mathematics. Overall, effect sizes were small and were similar in size to gender differences in mathematics performance. When differences exist, the pattern is for females to hold more negative attitudes. Gender differences in self-confidence and general mathematics attitudes are larger among high school and college students than among younger students. Effect sizes for mathematics anxiety differ depending upon the sample (highly selected or general). One exception to the general pattern is in stereotyping mathematics as a male domain, where males hold much more stereotyped attitudes ( d = -.90). While affect and attitudes toward mathematics are not the only influences on the development of gender differences in mathematics performance, they are important, and both male and female affect and attitudes should be considered in conjunction with other social and political influences as explanations.     

Social anxiety and post-event processing among African-American individuals

Background: Social anxiety is among the most prevalent psychiatric conditions, yet little attention has been paid to whether putative cognitive vulnerability factors related to social anxiety in predominantly White samples are related to social anxiety among historically underrepresented groups.

Design: We tested whether one such vulnerability factor, post-event processing (PEP; detailed review of social event that can increase state social anxiety) was related to social anxiety among African-American (AA; n?=?127) persons, who comprise one of the largest underrepresented racial groups in the U.S. Secondarily, we tested whether AA participants differed from non-Hispanic White participants (n?=?127) on PEP and social anxiety and whether race moderated the relation between PEP and social anxiety.

Method: Data were collected online among undergraduates.

Results: PEP was positively correlated with social anxiety among AA participants, even after controlling for depression and income, pr?=?.30, p?=?.001. AA and White participants did not differ on social anxiety or PEP, β?=??1.57, 95% CI: ?5.11, 1.96. The relation of PEP to social anxiety did not vary as a function of race, β?=?0.00, 95% CI: ?0.02, 0.02.

Conclusions: PEP may be an important cognitive vulnerability factor related to social anxiety among AA persons suffering from social anxiety.     

Mathematics anxiety and mental arithmetic performance: An exploratory investigation

Abstract

Two exploratory studies were conducted to determine if mathematics anxiety, as assessed by the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS), is related to the underlying mental processes of arithmetic performance. MARS scores were higher when the test was administered by computer, vs. the standard paper-and-pencil format, and were higher for female than male college students. Small but significant processing differences in simple addition and multiplication were found when subjects were divided by quartiles into anxiety groups. Much larger differences in processing speed and accuracy were found with complex addition problems and a set of difficult problems (e.g. 9 × 16 = 134, true or false) that tested all four arithmetic operations. Overall, the low anxiety group was consistently the most rapid and accurate, the medium high was consistently the slowest, and the high anxiety group the most prone to errors. The results suggest that genuine performance differences exist among the several levels of mathematics anxiety, and that chronometric, reaction time-based studies of such performance will be useful in revealing those differences.     

Differences in mathematics anxiety by sex, program, and education of university mathematics students in Turkey

In this study, we aimed to re-examine sex-related differences in mathematics anxiety and to investigate the effects of two different programs associated with mathematics education applied in Turkish universities on mathematics anxiety. Mathematics anxiety scores were assessed in 221 male and 142 female students, 238 in the education faculty and 125 in the science faculty. There were no sex-related mean differences for mathematics anxiety scores, and scores were not related to faculty program. The lower mean mathematics performance on the university entry examination of the students of science faculty may be associated with the mathematics anxiety.     

学业焦虑在亲密同伴之间相互影响的纵向研究

采用逐日测量的短期纵向研究对7个高中班级107对亲密同伴在一周内的学业焦虑进行测量,利用HLM检验学业焦虑在亲密同伴之间的相互影响。研究结果表明,在控制测量时间层级、个体层级和同伴层级控制变量之后,同伴学业焦虑对个体随后一天的学业焦虑存在显著的正影响。因此,同伴学业焦虑既是刺激个体产生学业焦虑的诱因,个体学业焦虑反过来又能促进同伴学业焦虑的进一步发展。本研究结果有助于进一步理解学业焦虑的人际成因和班级学业气氛的形成和发展。     

Internalizing behavior problems and scholastic achievement in children: cognitive and behavioral pathways as mediators of outcome.

Examined a conceptual model in which dual developmental pathways (behavioral and cognitive) are hypothesized to account for the relation among internalizing behavior problems, intelligence, and later scholastic achievement using a cross-sectional sample of 325 children. Classroom behavior and select aspects of cognitive functioning (vigilance, short-term memory) were hypothesized to mediate the relations among internalizing problems, IQ, and long-term scholastic achievement. Hierarchical tests applied to a nested series of models demonstrated that (a) individual differences in measured intelligence among children are associated with variations in classroom performance and cognitive functioning, (b) classroom performance and cognitive functioning make unique contributions to prediction of later achievement over and above the influence of intelligence, (c) anxious/depressive features are correlated but separable constructs, and (d) anxiety/depression and withdrawal contribute to prediction of classroom performance and cognitive functioning over and above the effects of intelligence. Classroom performance and cognitive functioning thus appear to mediate the effects of internalizing behaviors as well as intelligence. Particular attention to the presence and potential impact of social withdrawal on children's functioning, both alone and concomitant with anxiety/depression, appears warranted during the course of clinical evaluations owing to the strong continuity among these variables.     

Emotions at primary school: Negative achievement emotions and their relation with emotional competencies in ethnic minority and majority students

Scarce attention has been paid to ethnic minority students' emotions and related competencies at school. Nevertheless, theoretical frameworks such as the control–value theory underline the importance of achievement emotions for students' performance and well‐being. We involved minority (n = 63) and majority (n = 103) students attending the first, third, and fifth grade of primary school. We assessed negative achievement emotions (anxiety, anger, embarrassment, boredom, and hopelessness), emotion understanding, and emotion regulation. Factorial analyses supported the goodness of the structure of a questionnaire measuring the five achievement emotions in Italian and mathematics and its invariance across minority and majority students. Analyses of variance indicated that minority students felt more intense anger, embarrassment, and boredom for Italian and anxiety and embarrassment for mathematics. Path analyses revealed that emotion understanding and emotion regulation were significantly related to achievement emotions. Findings are discussed for their theoretical and applied relevance in promoting well‐being at school among minority and majority students.     

Metacognition and part-set cuing: Can interference be predicted at retrieval?

Although prior research has examined predictions of memory performance under conditions of interference at encoding, predictions of memory performance have not been examined for interference introduced via cues at retrieval. This was investigated in the present study by exposing participants to a random subset of to-be-recalled items just prior to retrieval (part-set cuing) and then eliciting an overall prediction of memory performance. Across three experiments, participants in part-set cuing conditions recalled proportionally fewer items than did participants who were not exposed to any cues. However, participants were unable to predict the detrimental effect of part-set cues on memory performance in either a semantic (Experiment 1) or an episodic (Experiment 2) memory task. Predictions were better calibrated after practice with part-set cuing, and there was evidence that prior experience with part-set cuing transferred to predictions made for a different part-set cuing task (Experiment 3). This suggests that only under some conditions are participants sensitive to the diminished accessibility of memories wrought by part-set cues and illustrates situations in which participants are or are not aware of variables at retrieval that influence memory performance.