This paper is from Session 5E: Statistics Education Across Discipline
which comes under Topic 5: Statistics education in the workplace, government and across disciplines
Paper 5E3 (Monday 9th, 11:00-12:30)
Psychological factors associated with academic performance in statistics
Presenter
- Martin Malaspina (Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, Peru)
Abstract
The importance of statistical thinking is recognized in most professions, and at least one course in statistics is considered in the curricula in order to develop skills in statistical analysis; however, many students - especially those of humanities - study statistics unwillingly and even with fear. In this context, the present study analyzes how the performance of a sample of psychology students in a statistics course is related to the attitudes toward statistics, statistics anxiety and the type of motivation to study it. Likewise, the research is complemented by a qualitative analysis through drawings and stories about the representations that students have about statistics. Knowing the importance of these psychological factors related to learning statistics provides elements to implement better strategies for improving its teaching.