The impact of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on math anxiety in adolescents
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA preliminary study explored whether mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) can reduce math anxiety. Three high school students with high math anxiety met individually with a school counselor twice a week for six weeks, using a manualized MBCT treatment for anxiety. Weekly math anxiety measurements showed a decrease for all three participants. The findings suggest MBCT may be a promising approach for math anxiety, but the small sample and single-subject design limit generalizability.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Nonconcurrent, multiple-baseline, single-subject research study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 3 |
| Population | High school students with high levels of math anxiety |
| Intervention | mindfulness-based cognitive therapy |
| Duration | 6 weeks, twice per week |
| Key finding | Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduced math anxiety in all three participants. |
Abstract
In this nonconcurrent, multiple-baseline, single-subject research study, the authors conducted a preliminary exploration of whether mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) can be expanded to the treatment of math anxiety. Three high school students who were assessed with high levels of math anxiety met individually twice a week for 6 weeks with the school counselor who used a manualized MBCT treatment for anxiety as the intervention. A weekly administration of a math anxiety measurement tool showed a decrease in math anxiety for all three participants.