WHO FEARS MATH MORE? GENDER INSIGHTS INTO MATHEMATICS ANXIETY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26618/acnck412Keywords:
mathematics anxiety, gender differences, junior high school, t-testAbstract
This study aims to examine gender differences in mathematics anxiety among junior high school students at SMP Sangkara Medan in the 2024/2025 academic year. A quantitative comparative design was employed involving 35 students from grades 7 and 8. Data were collected using a validated mathematics anxiety questionnaire and analyzed using an independent samples t-test. The results revealed no statistically significant difference in mathematics anxiety between male and female students. These findings suggest that mathematics anxiety is a universal and context-dependent phenomenon, rather than an issue inherently associated with gender, highlighting the importance of inclusive instructional approaches.
References
Akmalia, R., & Ulfah, S. (2021). Kecemasan dan Motivasi Belajar Siswa SMP terhadap Matematika Berdasarkan Gender di Masa Pandemi COVID-19. Jurnal Cendekia, 5(3), 2285–2293. https://doi.org/10.31004/cendekia.v5i3.846
Barroso, C., Ganley, C. M., McGraw, A. L., Geer, E. A., Hart, S. A., & Daucourt, M. C. (2021). A meta-analysis of the relation between math anxiety and math achievement. Psychological Bulletin, 147(2), 134–168. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000307
Carey, E., Hill, F., Devine, A., & Szücs, D. (2015). The Chicken or the Egg? The Direction of the Relationship Between Mathematics Anxiety and Mathematics Performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01987
Foley, A. E., Herts, J. B., Borgonovi, F., Guerriero, S., Levine, S. C., & Beilock, S. L. (2017). The Math Anxiety-Performance Link: A Global Phenomenon. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 26(1), 52–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721416672463
Ganley, C. M., & McGraw, A. L. (2016). The Development and Validation of a Revised Version of the Math Anxiety Scale for Young Children. Frontiers in Psychology, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01181
Gunderson, E. A., Park, D., Maloney, E. A., Beilock, S. L., & Levine, S. C. (2018). Reciprocal relations among motivational frameworks, math anxiety, and math achievement in early elementary school. Journal of Cognition and Development, 19(1), 21–46. https://doi.org/10.1080/15248372.2017.1421538
Hill, F., Mammarella, I. C., Devine, A., Caviola, S., Passolunghi, M. C., & Szűcs, D. (2016). Maths anxiety in primary and secondary school students: Gender differences, developmental changes and anxiety specificity. Learning and Individual Differences, 48, 45–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2016.02.006
Imro’ah, S., Winarso, W., & Baskoro, E. P. (2019). ANALISIS GENDER TERHADAP KECEMASAN MATEMATIKA DAN SELF EFFICACY SISWA. KALAMATIKA Jurnal Pendidikan Matematika, 4(1), 23–36. https://doi.org/10.22236/KALAMATIKA.vol4no1.2019pp23-36
Jameson, M. M., Sexton, J., London, D., & Wenner, J. M. (2024). Relationships and Gender Differences in Math Anxiety, Math Self-Efficacy, Geoscience Self-Efficacy, and Geoscience Interest in Introductory Geoscience Students. Education Sciences, 14(4), 426. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14040426
Juniardi, M. A., Rahmi, D., Yuniati, S., & Kurniati, A. (2024). TINGKATAN MATH ANXIETY SISWA SMP BERDASARKAN GENDER. SIGMA: JURNAL PENDIDIKAN MATEMATIKA, 16(1), 11–20. https://doi.org/10.26618/sigma.v16i1.14425
Kaskens, J., Segers, E., Goei, S. L., Van Luit, J. E. H., & Verhoeven, L. (2020). Impact of Children’s math self-concept, math self-efficacy, math anxiety, and teacher competencies on math development. Teaching and Teacher Education, 94, 103096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103096
Lailiyah, S., Hayat, S., Urifah, S., & Setyawati, M. (2021). LEVELS OF STUDENTS’ MATHEMATICS ANXIETIES AND THE IMPACTS ON ONLINE MATHEMATICS LEARNING. Jurnal Cakrawala Pendidikan, 40(1), 107–119. https://doi.org/10.21831/cp.v40i1.36437
Miatun, A., & Ulfah, S. (2023). The Limited Face-To-Face Learning Implementation: Gender and Math Anxiety Towards Mathematical Conceptual Understanding. Mosharafa: Jurnal Pendidikan Matematika, 12(4), 895–908. https://doi.org/10.31980/mosharafa.v12i4.1200
Pérez-Fuentes, M. D. C., Núñez, A., Molero, M. D. M., Gázquez, J. J., Rosário, P., & Núñez, J. C. (2020). The Role of Anxiety in the Relationship between Self-efficacy and Math Achievement. Psicología Educativa, 26(2), 137–143. https://doi.org/10.5093/psed2020a7
Pizzie, R. G., & Kraemer, D. J. M. (2017). Avoiding Math on a Rapid Timescale: Emotional Responsivity and Anxious Attention in Math Anxiety. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/131433
Ramirez, G., Shaw, S. T., & Maloney, E. A. (2018). Math Anxiety: Past Research, Promising Interventions, and a New Interpretation Framework. Educational Psychologist, 53(3), 145–164. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2018.1447384
Real, I. I., & Carvalho, C. (2025). The influence of gender stereotypes on self-efficacy and mathematical anxiety in Peruvian students aspiring to STEM careers. Journal on Mathematics Education, 16(2), 407–422. https://doi.org/10.22342/jme.v16i2.pp407-422
Usman, N., & Widyastuti, W. (2024). Perbedaan Gender dalam Kecemasan Matematika di Kalangan Siswa Kelas Atas. Journal of Islamic Psychology, 1(1), 10. https://doi.org/10.47134/islamicpsychology.v1i1.48
Van Mier, H. I., Schleepen, T. M. J., & Van Den Berg, F. C. G. (2019). Gender Differences Regarding the Impact of Math Anxiety on Arithmetic Performance in Second and Fourth Graders. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2690. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02690
Zhang, J., Zhao, N., & Kong, Q. P. (2019). The Relationship Between Math Anxiety and Math Performance: A Meta-Analytic Investigation. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1613. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01613
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
With the receipt of the article by the SIGMA: Jurnal Pendidikan Matematika Editorial Board and the decision to be published, then the copyright regarding the article will be diverted to SIGMA: Jurnal Pendidikan Matematika.
Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar as the publisher of SIGMA: Jurnal Pendidikan Matematika hold the copyright regarding all the published articles in this journal.Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar has the right to multiply and distribute the article and every author is not allowed to publish the same article that was published in this journal.
The manuscript authentic and copyright statement submission can be downloaded ON THIS FORM.

