Steve Petrill
Psychology
Fear by the Numbers: New Insights on Genes, Motivation and Math Anxiety
Just say the word “math” and many people – even some science writers – actually cringe. But why is that? Even students who have difficulty reading don’t have the same level of anxiety when they’re trying to learn. Stephen Petrill has begun to find the answers. He and his research team are studying identical and same-sex fraternal twins to see if they can tease out the various genetic and environmental factors related to math anxiety. They found that genes do play a role. In one study, genetic factors explained about 40 percent of individual differences in math anxiety. Petrill says genetic factors can also exacerbate or reduce the risk of performing poorly at math. In his most recent studies, Petrill’s team has examined the link between math anxiety, math motivation and math achievement. As might be expected, math anxiety is particularly harmful to those with low motivation to learn math.But even for those who are highly motivated to learn math, high levels of anxiety are harmful. By contrast, moderate levels of math anxiety are related to high math achievement in those with high motivation.The results show that learning math isn’t all about cognitive skills, Petrill said: Fear and anxiety play a role.
Petrill is a professor of psychology.
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