Validation of an Adapted Version of the Statistical Anxiety Scale in English and Its Relationship to Attitudes Toward Statistics

Monique O’Bryant,Anthony J Onwuegbuzie,Prathiba Natesan Batley

doi:10.1177/21582440211001378

Monique O’Bryant, Anthony J Onwuegbuzie + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211001378

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Abstract

The aims of this study were to validate an instrument that measured statistics anxiety and to examine how attitudes toward statistics predict statistics anxiety using the Attitudes Toward Statistics (ATS) Scale for a sample of 323 undergraduate social science majors enrolled in colleges and universities in the United States. A confirmatory factor analysis suggested retaining a revised two-factor model of the Statistical Anxiety Scale (SAS) to measure statistics anxiety, namely, help and interpretation anxiety ([Formula: see text] = 49.37, df = 38.13, p = .105, comparative fit index [CFI] = .959, standardized root mean square residual [SRMR] = .035, root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = .076). An examination of discriminant validity of the scores of the SAS with scores of the ATS subscales revealed that statistics anxiety and attitudes toward statistics are distinct constructs. Structural equational modeling was used to determine whether attitude toward course and attitude toward field were predictors of examination anxiety and asking for help anxiety. Of the two factors of the ATS scale, attitudes toward field and attitudes toward course, the latter predicted examination anxiety better than the former did, although both were moderate predictors of examination anxiety. We recommend that statistics educators consider the role of statistics anxiety as well as attitudes toward statistics and the field when designing their pedagogical approach.

Highlights

As part of the academic training in postsecondary schools, students in the social sciences often are required to take at least one statistics course regardless of their background in statistics or mathematics (Pan & Tang, 2004)
When high levels of anxiety are accompanied by negative attitudes and low mathematical competency, students’ overall attitudes toward statistics tend to be low, which is associated with low performance in introductory statistics courses (Chiesi & Primi, 2010)
The purpose of this study was to test the psychometric properties of the English version of the Statistical Anxiety Scale (SAS) (Vigil-Colet et al, 2008), a 24-item instrument designed exclusively to measure statistics anxiety and to understand the relationship between statistics anxiety and attitudes

Summary

Introduction

As part of the academic training in postsecondary schools, students in the social sciences often are required to take at least one statistics course regardless of their background in statistics or mathematics (Pan & Tang, 2004). For students in nonmathematical disciplines, statistics courses often are associated with negative experiences and high levels of anxiety (Chew & Dillon, 2014). Statistics anxiety can be redefined as a negative emotional state stimulated from any form of interaction with statistics and exacerbated by negative attitudes toward it This negative feeling is associated with, but separate from, mathematics anxiety (Chew & Dillon, 2014). When high levels of anxiety are accompanied by negative attitudes and low mathematical competency, students’ overall attitudes toward statistics tend to be low, which is associated with low performance in introductory statistics courses (Chiesi & Primi, 2010). Statistics anxiety has been shown to hinder performance in statistics courses for approximately 80% of graduate students (Onwuegbuzie, 2004)

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