Statistics Anxiety Research Articles

Statistics Anxiety and the Big Five Personality Factors

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between statistics anxiety and the Big Five personality factors using a multivariate approach. Participants were 83 students (69% female) enrolled in one of three statistics courses. A canonical correlation analysis revealed that Neuroticism was positively correlated whereas Openness to Experience and Agreeableness was negatively correlated with Worth of Statistics, Fear of Asking for Help, and Fear of Statistics Teachers. Extraversion was positively correlated with Interpretation Anxiety, Test and Class Anxiety, and Fear of Asking for Help. Conscientiousness was not correlated with statistics anxiety. Practical implications include advising statistics instructors to adjust teaching in order to cater to students with different personalities. Limitations include the possibility of social desirability bias and non-generalizabilty of results.

Statistics Anxiety and Achievement in a Statistics Course among Psychology Students

Learning about statistics presents a challenge to psychology studentswhose background in mathematics is not strong. The percentage ofstudents who fail Statistics course at the Department of Psychology inone university in Malaysia is of concern. A survey that included ameasure of statistics anxiety was conducted at the beginning of asemester among students taking a statistics course. Performancemeasures included a basic mathematic review quiz, continuousassessment mark, final examination marks, and total marks. The coursewas divided into three sections, all taught by the same instructor.Scores from 139 students were used in the analysis. Statisticsanxiety and attitude towards statistics are not significantly correlatedand both are not related to the total marks. The mathematics quizscore is a significant predictor of the total marks. The instrument formeasuring pre-course mathematics ability could be used in class as apart of the teaching strategy to improve students’ learning experience. Keywords : statistics anxiety, academic performance, psychology students

Reliability and validity of the Statistical Anxiety Scale among students in Singapore and Australia

Given the negative relationships between statistics anxiety and statistics achievement, it is important for researchers and instructors to have a reliable and valid measure to identify students with statistics anxiety. The purpose of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties of Vigil-Colet, Lorenzo-Seva, and Condon's (2008) Statistical Anxiety Scale (SAS) among students in Singapore and Australia. Unlike the commonly used Statistical Anxiety Rating Scale, the SAS provides a specific measure of statistics anxiety. Participants were 197 undergraduates (79.2% female) in the James Cook University Psychology programs at the Singaporean (70.1%) and Australian (29.9 %) campuses. Acceptable internal consistency reliabilities, ranging from 0.88 to 0.95 for the three factors of the SAS, were found in the current study. Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a modified three-factor model best describe the data. Scores on the SAS shared positive correlations with another measure of statistics anxiety, and negative correlations with a measure of attitudes toward statistics. The results provided support for the use of the SAS among Singaporean and Australian psychology undergraduates.

The Development and Validation of the Statistics Comprehensive Anxiety Response Evaluation

Statistics anxiety has been reported to be common for many college students across a variety of majors. There are several scales that are used to measure statistics anxiety, with the Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale being the most widely used. Psychometric data is limited for all of these scales which is why this study attempted to create a psychometrically sound measure of statistics anxiety that could be used by instructors and researchers across a wide range of disciplines. The Statistics Comprehensive Anxiety Response Evaluation (SCARE) was developed and found to possess strong psychometric properties. The different types of reliabilities examined were internal consistency, test-retest, and split-half, whereas the validities included content, construct, concurrent, and predictive. Most noteworthy was that the SCARE was used to show that high levels of statistics anxiety were associated with lower performance in a statistics course. This measure may be used in identifying students who may be at a psychological disadvantage prior to taking a statistics course so instructional modifications may be made for those with high levels of statistics anxiety.

Instruction of Statistics via Computer-Based Tools: Effects on Statistics' Anxiety, Attitude, and Achievement

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of statistics instruction using computer-based tools, on statistics anxiety, attitude, and achievement. This study was designed as quasi-experimental research and the pattern used was a matched pre-test/post-test with control group design. Data was collected using three scales: a Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale, a Statistics Attitude Scale, and a Statistics Achievement Scale. ANCOVA and MANCOVA analyses the used during the analysis process. The findings of the study revealed that computer-based tools statistic instruction reduces statistics anxiety and improves attitude toward statistics and increases success.

Nueva evidencia sobre la Statistical Anxiety Scale (SAS)

As anxiety is negatively related to academic performance, and it is broadly known the existence of both anxiety towards statistics and negative statistics results, statistical anxiety may play a role of mediating negative outcomes in this subject. In this context, the Statistical Anxiety Scale (Vigil-Colet, Lorenzo-Seva, & Condon, 2008) aims to be a useful tool in the comparison of the predictive power of specific and general measures of statistics performance. In order to achieve this goal, the scale is based on three dimensions of anxiety, referred to three specific issues: regarding the exam, when asking for help or advice in statistics understanding and during the process of results interpretation. This three-factor structure was found in the scale first validation, in a sample composed by Italian and Spanish students. The aim of the current study is to add new evidence on the reliability and validity of the scale, using robust statistical techniques for the reliability study, and extending the validity of the study regarding its main criteria: academic performance, as it shouldn’t be considered as synonymous of self-efficacy.

Development and Score-Validation of the Research Anxiety Rating Scale

Most graduate students enrolled in programs within colleges of education are required to complete one or more research methodology courses as a necessary part of their degrees. Unfortunately, it appears that these courses are exceedingly difficult for many students, who typically experience underachievement. Many students experience high levels of anxiety in these classes. Onwuegbuzie (1997) theorized that the anxiety experienced in research methodology classes, termed research anxiety, represents a multidimensional phenomenon. Based on this conceptualization, the Research Anxiety Rating Scale (RARS) was developed. Thus, the purpose of this study was to describe the development of the RARS, as well as to delineate the psychometric properties of this scale. The RARS was administered to a sample of 262 graduate students (Study 2). Evidence of construct-related validity of the RARS was provided via an exploratory factor analysis, using a varimax rotation, in which seven specific factors were identified, explaining 57.1% of the variance in RARS scores. These seven factors were (a) fear of libraries, (b) fear of writing, (c) fear of statistics, (d) fear of conducting research, (e) fear of research language, (f) fear of research courses, and (g) perceived utility and competence. Evidence of criterion-related validity (i.e., concurrent validity) was established via statistically significant correlations between scores on the RARS and scores on the Statistical Anxiety Rating Scale (STARS), the Library anxiety Scale (LAS), and the Writing Apprehension Test (WAT). No gender differences were found with respect to the RARS total scale or subscales. The implications are discussed.

Statistics Anxiety: A Barrier for Education in Research Methodology for Medical Students?

Research methodology forms an important part of the required training of medical doctors. Unfortunately, medical students tend to show low appreciation for education on this topic.

Teaching Statistics in Language Testing Courses

The purpose of this article is to examine the literature on teaching statistics for useful ideas that teachers of language testing courses can draw on and incorporate into their teaching toolkits as they see fit. To those ends, the article addresses eight questions: What is known generally about teaching statistics? Why are students so anxious about statistics? How can teachers help students overcome statistics anxiety? What teaching approaches that have been tried and worked? What classroom tools have proven effective? What topics should we cover? What advice does the literature offer? And, where can teachers find more information? This overview of research and reflections on these topics should prove useful to anyone facing the prospect of teaching testing statistics to language teachers.

WORRY, INTOLERANCE OF UNCERTAINTY, AND STATISTICS ANXIETY

Statistics anxiety is a problem for most graduate students. This study investigates the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty, worry, and statistics anxiety. Intolerance of uncertainty was significantly related to worry, and worry was significantly related to three types of statistics anxiety. Six types of statistics anxiety were significantly lower by the end of the semester.
 First published May 2013 at Statistics Education Graduate students ournal Archives

Why Wait? The Influence of Academic Self-Regulation, Intrinsic Motivation, and Statistics Anxiety on Procrastination in Online Statistics

Online graduate education programs are expanding rapidly. Many of these pro- grams require a statistics course, resulting in an increasing need for online statistics courses. The study reported here grew from experiences teaching online, graduate statistics courses. In seeking answers on how to improve this class, I discovered that research has yet to explore teaching and learning in online statistics courses. The purpose of the study was to ameliorate this gap in the literature by examining the influence of self-regulation, intrinsic motivation, and statistics anxiety on passive procrastination. The set of independent vari- ables explained nearly thirty percent of the variance.

Adaptive Perfectionism, Maladaptive Perfectionism and Statistics Anxiety in Graduate Psychology Students

The current study examined if correlations between statistics anxiety and dimensions of perfectionism (adaptive and maladaptive) were present amongst a sample of psychology graduate students ( N = 96). Results demonstrated that scores on the APS-R Discrepancy scale, corresponding to maladaptive perfectionism, correlated with higher levels of statistics anxiety with several subscales of the Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale (STARS). Results also demonstrated negative correlations between bilingualism and dimensions of statistics anxiety. Implications for future research and practical implications are presented.

Factorial invariance of the statistical anxiety rating scale across sex and students' classification

Summary The Statistical Anxiety Rating Scale (STARS) was used to measure statistics anxiety across 423 graduate and undergraduate students from a midsized university, in the western United States. Students' responses were analyzed using confirma-tory factor analysis (CFA) to assess the validity of scores from the proposed six-factor model, which was well-fitting, according to various adjunct fit indexes. Students' responses were then examined using multigroup CFA to explore factorial invariance across sex and student classification (i.e., undergraduates and graduates). The model was found to be factorially invariant across sex, but not across student classification, possibly meaning graduate and undergraduate students ascribed different meaning to some items. If one ignores the test of factorial invariance, between-groups statistical tests can be unduly influenced by measurement artifacts, sometimes erroneously identifying statistically significant mean differences when there are none.

Evaluation of a Workshop to Reduce Negative Perceptions of Statistics in Undergraduate Psychology Students

The authors evaluated whether a brief group workshop that combined psycho-education and learning strategies improved self-efficacy, attitudes, and anxiety regarding statistics in psychology students. The workshop was completed in Week 1 of a compulsory 1st-year psychology statistics course. Prior to the workshop, the attendees ( n = 10) did not differ from the non-attending control group ( n = 17) on statistics self-efficacy, attitudes, or anxiety. These measures were re-assessed after the workshop near the end of semester (Week 10). Workshop attendance resulted in significantly higher self-efficacy, computational self-concept, and attitudes regarding the worth of statistics, and less fear of statistics teachers. It did not change statistics anxiety. Participants evaluated the workshop as useful, especially the information on effective learning strategies. The results demonstrate that a brief and cost-effective group intervention can improve self-efficacy and attitudes regarding statistics. Improvements to better target anxiety are discussed.

Statistics anxiety, state anxiety during an examination, and academic achievement

A large proportion of students identify statistics courses as the most anxiety-inducing courses in their curriculum. Many students feel impaired by feelings of state anxiety in the examination and therefore probably show lower achievements. The study investigates how statistics anxiety, attitudes (e.g., interest, mathematical self-concept) and trait anxiety, as a general disposition to anxiety, influence experiences of anxiety as well as achievement in an examination. Participants were 284 undergraduate psychology students, 225 females and 59 males. Two weeks prior to the examination, participants completed a demographic questionnaire and measures of the STARS, the STAI, self-concept in mathematics, and interest in statistics. At the beginning of the statistics examination, students assessed their present state anxiety by the KUSTA scale. After 25 min, all examination participants gave another assessment of their anxiety at that moment. Students' examination scores were recorded. Structural equation modelling techniques were used to test relationships between the variables in a multivariate context. Statistics anxiety was the only variable related to state anxiety in the examination. Via state anxiety experienced before and during the examination, statistics anxiety had a negative influence on achievement. However, statistics anxiety also had a direct positive influence on achievement. This result may be explained by students' motivational goals in the specific educational setting. The results provide insight into the relationship between students' attitudes, dispositions, experiences of anxiety in the examination, and academic achievement, and give recommendations to instructors on how to support students prior to and in the examination.

Overcoming Graduate Students' Negative Perceptions of Statistics

Although there has been some attention in the literature to such issues as students' attitudes toward statistics, instructors are still constantly faced with the challenge to engage students; understand their perceptions, motivations, and interests; and deal with their reluctance and negative attitudes toward the field of statistics. The purpose of the present study was to (1) examine students' attitudes toward statistics; (2) identify characteristics of students with the most negative attitudes toward statistics; (3) determine methods of statistics instruction that students most prefer; and (4) present strategies to overcome fears, resistance, anxiety, and negative attitudes and enhance the learning environment. The findings from the study of 195 graduate social work students demonstrate that factors contributing to statistics anxiety include math phobia, lack of relevance to social work, instructor's characteristics, and classroom environment. Among the preferred instructional methods students identified helpful strategies such as instructors' being attentive to students' anxiety, setting a slow course pace, and providing additional tutoring. The study findings suggested three major areas for enhancing statistics learning: (1) fostering environment that is nonthreatening, friendly, and conducive to learning; (2) clarifying statistical concepts in plain terms; and (3) offering practical skills relevant to students' field of specialization.

Using snakes to constrict statistics anxiety

Using snakes to constrict statistics anxiety

Online Homework vs. Traditional Homework: Statistics Anxiety and Self-Efficacy in an Educational Statistics Course

The purpose of the study was to investigate whether online homework benefits students over traditional homework in the areas of statistics self-efficacy, statistics anxiety, and grades. Using a nonequivalent control-group design, one section of students was assigned traditional homework while the other section was assigned online homework. The two groups were then compared on measures of self-efficacy, statistics anxiety, and homework, test, and final grades. Results indicated that homework delivery method affected only student homework grades, but did not affect their other grades, self-efficacy, or anxiety.

Psychometric Evaluation and Experimental Validation of the Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale

The Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale (STARS) was adapted into German to examine its psychometric properties (n = 400). Two validation studies (n = 66, n = 96) were conducted to examine its criterion-related validity. The psychometric properties of the questionnaire were very similar to those previously reported for the original English version in various countries and other language versions. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated 2 second-order factors: One was more closely related to anxiety and the other was more closely related to negative attitudes toward statistics. Predictive validity of the STARS was shown both in an experimental exam-like situation in the laboratory and during a real examination situation. Taken together, the findings indicate that statistics anxiety as assessed by the STARS is a useful construct that is more than just an expression of a more general disposition to anxiety.

Adaptation of Survey of Attitudes Towards Statistics (SATS 36) for Russian Sample

In this paper we discuss the process of adapting a tool for measuring statistics anxiety (Survey of Attitudes towards Statistics (SATS 36)) in Russia. Our sample consists of 253 political science, sociology, and psychology students in statistics courses. The internal consistency of the Russian SATS is 0.94, however there are some differences in factor structure between the original and the new scale.