Sex Differences in High School Students' Causal Attributions of Performance in Mathematics

Abstract

The theory of causal attribution was applied to the problem of mathematics avoidance or the under-enrollment of females in nonrequired high school mathematics courses. It was hypothesized that sex differences in attributions of performance in mathematics would parallel previously documented sex differences in attributions in other achievement areas. Twelve hundred and twenty-four high school females (N=647) and males (N=577) took the Mathematics Attribution Scale and a test of mathematics achievement. As predicted, males and females differed in the strength of various attributions used to explain successful and unsuccessful performance in mathematics. Further, it was determined that sex and achievement in mathematics contribute separately to the variance in attribution patterns.