Conclusions

The primary goal of this thesis was to examine the link between cognitive and emotional mathematics learning problems. The work in this thesis is unique in that it is the first study to systematically measure the relation between mathematics learning problems and MA in large samples of school children. The secondary goal of the current thesis was to investigate gender differences in DD and MA.

Systematic variation of maths and reading performance thresholds revealed that the prevalence of DD ranged between 0.89-17.23% depending on the mathematics performance threshold used. We used an operational definition of DD, setting reading and maths

performance thresholds at 1 SD below the mean, and found that 5.6% of children were affected. This prevalence rate was confirmed in separate samples and suggests that

approximately 6% of UK school children are affected by DD. Longitudinal follow-up of a smaller sample of children with DD showed that including additional measures of

mathematics, reading and IQ in the diagnostic criteria identified a group of children with severe and persistent DD. Approximately 80% of these children met the criteria for DD approximately two years after diagnosis. In the context of the wider DD literature, these results suggest that researchers should come to an agreement about the diagnostic criteria for DD in order to ensure that they are studying similar samples so that findings can be integrated across studies. Agreeing upon a definition of DD would not necessarily require agreement on the theoretical origins of DD, as DD could merely be defined operationally, as we did in the

184 current work. These results also suggest that DD should be measured using several

assessments of mathematics as well as multiple control measures.

MA scores were not normally distributed, thus, high MA was defined as scores at or above the 90th percentile for the sample, rather than using SD definitions as other researchers have done in previous studies. The finding that MA scores were not normally distributed coincides with several recent studies showing that MA is not normally distributed in adults and secondary school samples. These results suggest that MA may not, in fact, be normally distributed, at least using the scales currently used in the field, thus, SD definitions should not be used to define discrete groups of children with differing MA levels.

MA levels were higher in children with DD than in children with average or above average mathematics performance; however, these results were restricted to small, selected samples. The prevalence of co-occurrence of DD and high maths anxiety was estimated in a larger sample using the abovementioned definitions. Relatively few children with DD had high maths anxiety and the majority of students with high maths anxiety, in fact, had mathematics performance within or above the average range, suggesting that MA is not just restricted to children with poor maths performance. Moreover, these results suggest several different potential pathways to MA and maths performance deficits. Furthermore, because cognitive and emotional mathematics problems are dissociable, they likely require different types of intervention. Whereas DD children would likely benefit from interventions which focus on the improvement of mathematical skills, WM or spatial skills, previous research has suggested that children with MA may benefit from interventions that focus on alleviating anxiety rather than targeting cognitive skills. Future studies could further test this possibility.

Throughout this thesis, there was little evidence of gender differences in mathematics performance at the primary or secondary school level. Moreover, when absolute performance thresholds were used to define DD, there was no gender difference in DD prevalence. These results suggest that gender differences in maths performance are non-existent at the primary and early secondary school level. However at both school levels, girls had higher MA than boys, and more girls were affected by co-occurring DD and MA than were boys. Higher MA in girls may be a potential explanation for the underrepresentation of females in careers involving mathematics.

185 Collectively, the results of the current thesis contribute to the existing body of

mathematical cognition research suggesting a complex interaction between the motivational, cognitive and emotional factors associated with learning mathematics. To ensure

mathematical well-being in all children, educators must pay attention to all facets of mathematics learning.

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