Abstract
Separate lines of research suggest that people who are better at estimating numerical quantities using the approximate number system (ANS) have better math performance, and that people with high levels of math anxiety have worse math performance. Only a handful of studies have examined both ANS acuity and math anxiety in the same participants and those studies report contradictory results. To address these inconsistencies, in the current study 87 undergraduate students completed assessments of ANS acuity, math anxiety, and three different measures of math. We considered moderation models to examine the interplay of ANS acuity and math anxiety on different aspects of math performance. Math anxiety and ANS acuity were both unique significant predictors of the ability to automatically recall basic number facts. ANS acuity was also a unique significant predictor of the ability to solve applied math problems, and this relation was further qualified by a significant interaction with math anxiety: the positive association between ANS acuity and applied problem solving was only present in students with high math anxiety. Our findings suggest that ANS acuity and math anxiety are differentially related to various aspects of math and should be considered together when examining their respective influences on math ability. Our findings also raise the possibility that good ANS acuity serves as a protective factor for highly math-anxious students on certain types of math assessments.
Highlights
In today’s society, it is becoming increasingly important for people to be able to make sense of mathematical information
What factors contribute to difficulties with mathematics? Do these factors interact to influence math performance and if so, how? The present paper will explore two specific factors: math anxiety and the foundational understanding of quantities that is at the core of the approximate number system
In order to better understand the complex integration of factors driving differences in people’s mathematical abilities, we examined the relation between approximate number system (ANS) acuity and math anxiety in a sample of undergraduate students and tested both mediation and moderation models to examine the interplay of ANS acuity and math anxiety on three different outcome measures of math performance
Summary
In today’s society, it is becoming increasingly important for people to be able to make sense of mathematical information. The present paper will explore two specific factors: math anxiety and the foundational understanding of quantities that is at the core of the approximate number system. A substantial body of research attributes low math performance to math anxiety—a negative emotional reaction to situations involving numbers or math [1,2,3]. A negative correlation between math anxiety and math performance emerges for children during the elementary or middle school years [5,6,7], and as children develop, their math anxiety becomes more specific and distinct from generalized anxiety [8]. Adults with high levels of math anxiety tend to avoid math courses and endorse negative beliefs about their own math abilities [2], in turn strengthening the association between math anxiety and math performance
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