The Need to Develop an Individualized Intervention for Mathematics Anxiety

Abstract

Mathematics anxiety is prevalent in many societies around the world, ranging from 30 to 70% (for a review, see Betz, 1978; Dowker et al., 2016). More than 30% of 15-year-old students across the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries reported having mathematics anxiety (OECD, 2013). Several studies have shown that mathematics anxiety is related to both mathematics performance and joining Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)-related careers (Moustafa et al., 2017, 2020; Zhang et al., 2019). While most prior studies on the link between mathematics anxiety and interest in STEM careers are correlational, it is plausible to assume that mathematics anxiety at early school years (Krinzinger et al., 2009) could have led to low interest in STEM careers later in life. Importantly, there are almost no existing approved interventions for mathematics anxiety. The purpose of this current opinion article is to highlight the need to develop an individualized intervention that targets factors leading to mathematics anxiety in students.