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Math anxiety and deficient executive control: does reappraisal modulate this link?
Lital Daches Cohen1, Orly Rubinsten1
1Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, Department of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
|April 7, 2022
Summary
Math anxiety hinders executive control, but reappraisal helps manage emotional distractions. This suggests reappraisal-based interventions can improve math performance for anxious individuals.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Educational Psychology
Background:
- Executive control functions and emotion regulation are crucial in managing math anxiety.
- Math anxiety can impair cognitive processes, particularly attention and emotional regulation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between emotion regulation strategies (reappraisal, suppression) and executive control of attention in math anxiety.
- To determine if reappraisal can mitigate emotional interference from math-related stimuli.
Main Methods:
- 107 adults completed questionnaires on emotion regulation and math anxiety.
- Participants performed a flanker task after priming with math-related or negative words.
- Emotional interference in high-conflict attention tasks was assessed.
Main Results:
- Highly math-anxious individuals struggled with emotional distractions from math information, even simple words.
- A tendency to use reappraisal correlated with better emotional regulation when facing math-related threats.
- Reappraisal was linked to reduced emotional reactions and improved performance in math-anxious individuals.
Conclusions:
- Math anxiety impairs executive control over emotional distractions.
- Reappraisal is an effective strategy for reducing emotional interference in math anxiety.
- Reappraisal-focused interventions show promise for improving outcomes in individuals with math anxiety.
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