Gender
differences in mathematics anxiety and the relation to mathematics performance
while controlling for test anxiety
Mathematics
anxiety (MA), a state of discomfort associated with performing mathematical
tasks, is thought to affect a notable proportion of the school age population.
Some research has indicated that MA negatively affects mathematics performance
and that girls may report higher levels of MA than boys. On the other hand some
research has indicated that boys' mathematics performance is more negatively
affected by MA than girls' performance is. The aim of the current study was
measure girls' and boys' mathematics performance as well as their levels of MA
while controlling for test anxiety (TA) a construct related to MA but which is
typically not controlled for in MA studies.