Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?

Previous research about the existence of an attentional bias for math in highly math anxious (HMA) individuals shows inconsistent results, and methodologies used so far cannot distinguish the various components of attentional bias. Here we adapted Grafton and MacLeod (2014)’s methodology to assess b...

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Autores: González Gómez, Belén, Colomé, Àngels, Núñez Peña, María Isabel
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repositorio:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:2445/215229
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2445/215229
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Compromís (Psicologia)
Matemàtica
Ansietat
Atenció
Funcions executives (Neuropsicologia)
Commitment (Psychology))
Mathematics
Anxiety
Attention
Executive functions (Neuropsychology)
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spelling Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?González Gómez, BelénColomé, ÀngelsNúñez Peña, María IsabelCompromís (Psicologia)MatemàticaAnsietatAtencióFuncions executives (Neuropsicologia)Commitment (Psychology))MathematicsAnxietyAttentionExecutive functions (Neuropsychology)Previous research about the existence of an attentional bias for math in highly math anxious (HMA) individuals shows inconsistent results, and methodologies used so far cannot distinguish the various components of attentional bias. Here we adapted Grafton and MacLeod (2014)’s methodology to assess biases linked to math anxiety in engagement and disengagement when task-irrelevant math and neutral symbols are briefly presented. Twenty-one HMA and 21 low math-anxious individuals were asked to perform the attentional task just after solving an arithmetic task expected to generate group differences in state anxiety. Considering attentional control theory, state anxiety will likely increase allocation of attention to task-irrelevant stimuli. Therefore, individual differences in efficiency responding to this task, which despite being simple and non-mathematical is interrupted by task-irrelevant stimuli, were also analyzed to study whether HMA individuals show reduced attentional control. Our results provide evidence against the presence of an attentional bias towards/against mathematical symbols in visuospatial orienting of the HMA population, neither in the form of an engagement bias nor as a disengagement bias. Rather, HMA individuals were slower and could not take advantage of a longer interval to overcome distraction, which suggest less efficient attentional control, at least when they experience higher state anxiety. Therefore, it is unlikely that an attentional bias for math may originate or aggravate math anxiety. However, reduced attentional control may underlie the less efficient processing on math tasks usually shown by HMA individuals, so research on attention in math anxiety should keep focusing on HMA’s difficulties in executive control.Springer Nature2024202420242024info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion16 p.application/pdfhttps://hdl.handle.net/2445/215229Articles publicats en revistes (Cognició, Desenvolupament i Psicologia de l'Educació)reponame:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunyainstname:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)InglésReproducció del document publicat a: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04828-2Current Psychology, 2024, vol. 43, num.7, p. 6533-6548https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04828-2cc by (c) González Gómez, Belén et al., 2024https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:recercat.cat:2445/2152292026-05-29T05:05:01Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
title Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
spellingShingle Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
González Gómez, Belén
Compromís (Psicologia)
Matemàtica
Ansietat
Atenció
Funcions executives (Neuropsicologia)
Commitment (Psychology))
Mathematics
Anxiety
Attention
Executive functions (Neuropsychology)
title_short Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
title_full Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
title_fullStr Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
title_full_unstemmed Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
title_sort Math anxiety and attention: Biased orienting to math symbols or less efficient attentional control?
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv González Gómez, Belén
Colomé, Àngels
Núñez Peña, María Isabel
author González Gómez, Belén
author_facet González Gómez, Belén
Colomé, Àngels
Núñez Peña, María Isabel
author_role author
author2 Colomé, Àngels
Núñez Peña, María Isabel
author2_role author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Compromís (Psicologia)
Matemàtica
Ansietat
Atenció
Funcions executives (Neuropsicologia)
Commitment (Psychology))
Mathematics
Anxiety
Attention
Executive functions (Neuropsychology)
topic Compromís (Psicologia)
Matemàtica
Ansietat
Atenció
Funcions executives (Neuropsicologia)
Commitment (Psychology))
Mathematics
Anxiety
Attention
Executive functions (Neuropsychology)
description Previous research about the existence of an attentional bias for math in highly math anxious (HMA) individuals shows inconsistent results, and methodologies used so far cannot distinguish the various components of attentional bias. Here we adapted Grafton and MacLeod (2014)’s methodology to assess biases linked to math anxiety in engagement and disengagement when task-irrelevant math and neutral symbols are briefly presented. Twenty-one HMA and 21 low math-anxious individuals were asked to perform the attentional task just after solving an arithmetic task expected to generate group differences in state anxiety. Considering attentional control theory, state anxiety will likely increase allocation of attention to task-irrelevant stimuli. Therefore, individual differences in efficiency responding to this task, which despite being simple and non-mathematical is interrupted by task-irrelevant stimuli, were also analyzed to study whether HMA individuals show reduced attentional control. Our results provide evidence against the presence of an attentional bias towards/against mathematical symbols in visuospatial orienting of the HMA population, neither in the form of an engagement bias nor as a disengagement bias. Rather, HMA individuals were slower and could not take advantage of a longer interval to overcome distraction, which suggest less efficient attentional control, at least when they experience higher state anxiety. Therefore, it is unlikely that an attentional bias for math may originate or aggravate math anxiety. However, reduced attentional control may underlie the less efficient processing on math tasks usually shown by HMA individuals, so research on attention in math anxiety should keep focusing on HMA’s difficulties in executive control.
publishDate 2024
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2024
2024
2024
2024
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv https://hdl.handle.net/2445/215229
url https://hdl.handle.net/2445/215229
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv Reproducció del document publicat a: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04828-2
Current Psychology, 2024, vol. 43, num.7, p. 6533-6548
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04828-2
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv cc by (c) González Gómez, Belén et al., 2024
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv cc by (c) González Gómez, Belén et al., 2024
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv 16 p.
application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Springer Nature
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Springer Nature
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Articles publicats en revistes (Cognició, Desenvolupament i Psicologia de l'Educació)
reponame:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
instname:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
instname_str Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
reponame_str Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
collection Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
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score 15,811543

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