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Knowledge Presentation Correlates With Mathematical Anxiety: Neural Evidence From Electroencephalography.

Tian Li¹, Xinlin Zhou²

¹Department of Psychology, Normal School of Hubei University, Wuhan, China.

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

|October 13, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Mathematical anxiety is linked to how we process symbolic information. This study used electroencephalography (EEG) to show that symbolic math problems overload neural processing, worsening anxiety.

Keywords:

electroencephalography (EEG)math anxiety math knowledge presentations three‐component mathematics

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Last Updated: Jan 15, 2026

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Investigating the Neural Mechanisms of Aware and Unaware Fear Memory with fMRI

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Psychology
Mathematics Education

Background:

Existing research links mathematical knowledge representation with mathematical anxiety.
Neurocognitive mechanisms underlying this relationship require further elucidation.

Purpose of the Study:

Investigate the neural correlates of mathematical anxiety across symbolic, verbal, and situational representations.
Examine how electroencephalography (EEG) signals reveal anxiety-related brain activity during mathematical problem-solving.

Main Methods:

Utilized electroencephalography (EEG) to record brain activity in 62 college students during mathematical problem-solving tasks.
Assessed neural responses to symbolic, verbal, and situational mathematical cues and problem-solving phases.
Analyzed EEG data in both time and frequency domains, correlating metrics with mathematical anxiety scores.

Main Results:

Symbolic cues (180-250 ms) showed enhanced N200 amplitudes compared to verbal and situational cues.
Symbolic conditions exhibited sustained activation enhancement during priming (400-800 ms) and problem-solving (3500-8000 ms) phases.
Anxiety-modulated oscillatory patterns, including high-beta synchronization (27-31 Hz), were observed during symbolic processing, indicating cognitive overload.

Conclusions:

Findings support a symbolic processing vulnerability hypothesis in mathematical anxiety.
Symbolic representation significantly amplifies mathematical anxiety by impairing neural efficiency.
EEG metrics related to symbolic processing correlate with individual mathematical anxiety levels.