Meta-analysis of skill-based and therapeutic interventions to address math anxiety

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to examine the impact of school-based therapeutic and math skill interventions on math anxiety symptoms and math achievement among K-12 students. Potential moderators included treatment type and study quality. A systematic search yielded 17 included studies representing 1786 primary and secondary students. The results suggested that therapeutic interventions reduced math anxiety symptoms (g_av = -0.51) better than math skill interventions (g_av = -0.32) and math skill interventions improved math achievement (g_av = 0.76) more than therapeutic interventions (g_av = 0.12). Moderator analysis indicated that when accounting for study quality, the differences between intervention type were not significant for either of the outcome measures (i.e., achievement and math anxiety). Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.