A study of the relationship of mathematics anxiety to grade level, gender, intelligence, and mathematics achievement

Concern is growing in America about the ability of students to perform successfully in mathematics and science. The cause of the decline in mathematics is not fully understood. Mathematics anxiety has been proposed as one of many possible causes for this decline.;The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between mathematics anxiety and grade level, gender, intelligence, and mathematics achievement in elementary 4th-6th) and junior high (7th & 8th) students. There were 216 subjects selected for this study from a private, K-8 school in the Mid-South region of the country. In order to test five hypotheses, subjects were administered the appropriate version of the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (mathematics anxiety measure). Scores from the Otis-Lennon School Ability Test, the Stanford Achievement Test, and mathematics averages were obtained for each subject.;Results of this research did not confirm that mathematics anxiety is correlated with grade level, gender, intelligence or mathematics achievement with three exceptions. The three exceptions were (a) mathematics anxiety decreased for subjects in grades seven and eight, (b) in the elementary group there was a significant weak negative correlation between mathematics anxiety and intelligence, and (c) for the elementary group there was a significant, weak, negative correlation between mathematics anxiety and four measures used for mathematics achievement.;Several recommendations are appropriate: (a) because mathematics anxiety decreased as mathematics achievement scores increased for most students, it would be beneficial for students to enroll in more mathematics courses to increase their mathematics achievement and hence, reduce mathematics anxiety; (b) since females exhibited higher mathematics anxiety scores at each grade level, females should be encouraged to take more mathematics courses; (c) females in elementary and junior high should be encouraged by teachers to engage more actively in mathematical activities and course work.