Towards an Integrative Model of Math Cognition: Interactions between Working Memory and Emotions in Explaining...

Area of Science:

• Cognitive psychology
• Educational psychology
• Developmental psychology

Background:

• Mathematical skills vary due to cognitive abilities and emotional factors like math anxiety and enjoyment.
• Understanding the interplay of cognitive and emotional factors is crucial for explaining individual differences in math performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how working memory, math anxiety, and enjoyment interact to predict mathematical performance in primary school students.
• To explore if these relationships differ based on math test type (story problems vs. speeded arithmetic) and student age.
• To examine the specific influence of math anxiety on performance in relation to working memory capacity.

Main Methods:

• Reanalysis of data from 4471 Dutch primary school students (grades 2-6).
• Utilized computerized working memory tasks and a questionnaire on math emotions.
• Employed mixed-effects models to analyze performance on story problems and speeded arithmetic tests.

Main Results:

• Working memory, math anxiety, and enjoyment linearly predicted performance on both math tests.
• Math anxiety negatively impacted performance more strongly for students with higher working memory, specifically on the arithmetic test.
• The relationship between math anxiety and performance increased with grade level, with no other significant age interactions found.

Conclusions:

• Cognitive abilities (working memory) and emotional experiences (math anxiety, enjoyment) are significant predictors of mathematical performance.
• The interplay between working memory and math anxiety has a specific negative effect on arithmetic performance, particularly in older students.
• Findings support situated views on learning, emphasizing the importance of considering both cognitive and emotional factors in mathematics education.