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What is statistics anxiety and why is it important?

Statistics anxiety encompasses a range of emotional, behavioural and cognitive symptoms when engaging with statistics (Onwuegbuzie & Wilson, 2003), but mainly can be conceptualised as intense negative feelings towards statistics. It can influence academic performance, particularly through .

We started this project after noticing in lectures and pastoral meetings, some of our psychology students expressed notably more concern about the statistics module than other aspects of the course. Carlota Cruces Serrano, a student at the time, described maths as her Achilles heel, and felt that it had defined her educational journey. She was interested in helping other students.

Our approach

We involved Carlota throughout the project to ensure a sensitive and student-informed approach. Carlota conducted focus groups with 10 undergraduate and postgraduate students who were studying psychology. A semi-structured topic guide was used to explore experiences of statistics anxiety including contributing factors, impact on wellbeing and university life, and perspectives on support. Some of the students who took part commented that they felt more at ease with a student facilitator, connecting through shared experience.

What contributed to statistics anxiety?

Students voiced that struggling with maths during secondary school – and assessment anxiety more generally – influenced their negative feelings. In terms of teaching, students reported facing difficulties when there was a lack of consolidation exercises. They also struggled when staff expectations of prior knowledge were significantly different to students’ learning.

‘Students struggled with statistics anxiety when staff expectations of prior knowledge were significantly different to their learning.’

What impact did it have?

Some students felt that while they experienced a high degree of statistics anxiety, they resolved to overcome their worries and push through the uncomfortable feelings they experienced. For some, the result of this was successful, and ultimately led to greater confidence and self-esteem when they navigated their initial challenges. For example, one student explained that while they had initially felt anxious, with time, they felt differently: ‘it almost became a source of strength because then I was like, you know, if I was able to get, like, through this …’

For others, statistics anxiety had a negative impact on their wellbeing and more broadly in terms of their university experience and aspirations for their future career. Some of the students reported feeling stressed, which had knock-on effects, such as influencing sleep. In addition, some students reported negative consequences on how they felt, such as making them ‘feel very much like an impostor’, and that their confidence more generally was affected. For one student, it made them worry about what a suitable career avenue would look like for them if they did not enjoy statistics. Asking for help felt out of reach, particularly if students felt intimidated by the expertise of teaching staff, felt embarrassed about their questions, or even felt unsure about how to ask the right question to get to the answer they needed. This reflects prior research on the role of the teaching environment on students .

Implications for practice and future research

Students put forward several strategies they felt would be helpful, including ensuring that each week of the curriculum builds on the previous week, and frequent recapping of content. Some students felt that teaching staff acknowledging that it is normal to feel anxious when learning new content would feel validating and helpful. The teaching environment was seen as crucial – fostering an atmosphere where students feel comfortable discussing what they are struggling with or any nerves about exams was voiced as a priority. The reported impact on wellbeing and enjoyment of the course suggests support outside of the lecture hall is needed. While students did not mention the role of personal tutors, or other pastoral staff, in their suggestions for support, they can play an important role. Moving forward, an intersectional lens could be applied to understand the influence of such factors as gender, ethnicity and being a first-generation university student on imposter syndrome relating to statistics anxiety.

These are some of our preliminary findings – we need to continue to conduct focus groups and talk to a larger group of students. To support more projects like this, students’ voices need to be actively invited and given a platform to speak up, not just to share their personal experiences but also to help shape solutions. Institutions can play a role in this by funding educational research and providing the infrastructure for new training for teaching staff on statistics anxiety.

References

Onwuegbuzie, A. J., & Wilson, V. A. (2003). Statistics anxiety: Nature, etiology, antecedents, effects, and treatments – a comprehensive review of the literature. Teaching in Higher Education, 8(2), 195–209.