THE IMPACT OF A VALUES

INTERVENTION ON A MATH TEST

IN COLLEGE STUDENTS

BY
JAHARRI ASTEN
 HYPOTHESIS:
MY STUDY EXAMINES WHETHER…
1. A BRIEF VALUES INTERVENTION IMPACTS SCORES ON A MATH TEST
2. RACIAL MINORITIES IN THE VALUE CONDITION SCORE HIGHER ON THE MATH TEST THAN
RACIAL MINORITIES IN THE CONTROL CONDITION
3. FEMALES IN THE VALUES CONDITION SCORE HIGHER ON THE MATH TEST THAN FEMALES IN
THE CONTROL CONDITION
4. THOSE WITH ACHIEVEMENT ANXIETY IN THE VALUES INTERVENTION SCORE HIGHER ON
THE MATH TEST THAN THOSE WITH ACHIEVEMENT ANXIETY  IN THE CONTROL CONDITION.
 WHY THE CATEGORIES?
SHOULDN’T WE JUST IMPROVE ALL MATH
SCORES?
…BECAUSE I AM LOOKING AT THE ROLE OF STEREOTYPE THREAT AND ANXIETY
 WHAT IS
STEREOTYPE
THREAT?
• BASICALLY, IT OCCURS WHEN A
SITUATION REMINDS YOU OF A
STEREOTYPE AND YOU START
BEHAVING AS IF THE STEREOTYPE
IS TRUE.

• ESSENTIALLY, YOU STEREOTYPE

YOURSELF.
 STEREOTYPE THREAT RESEARCH
A META ANALYSIS PERFORMED BY NGUYEN ET AL FOUND:
• TRADITIONALLY STEREOTYPED GROUPS CONSISTENTLY PERFORM AS EXPECTED
(BASED ON THE STEREOTYPE) WHEN THEY ARE SUBCONSCIOUSLY REMINDED
OF IT.
 WOMEN AND MATH
 AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND INTELLIGENCE TESTING
 POOR STUDENTS
 ALL TYPES OF VARIATIONS
 WHEN DIRECTLY REMINDED TEND TO OUTPERFORM ALL GROUPS
 MAYBE STEREOTYPE THREAT CONTRIBUTES TO THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP…
 IF SO, WHAT IS THE REMEDY?

Who will get the highest grade?

 VALUES RESEARCH – CAN WE CLOSE THE
GAP?
• STUDY 1: BRADY ET AL 2016
• THE LATINO’S IN THE SELF-AFFIRMING GROUP HAD SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER GPA’S THAN
THE LATINO’S IN THE CONTROL GROUP
• WRITING INTERVENTION: EXPERIMENTAL GROUP SELF AFFIRMED; CONTROL GROUP WROTE
ABOUT THE VALUES OF OTHERS.

• STUDY 2: COHEN ET AL 2006

• A BRIEF VALUES INTERVENTION SUCCESSFULLY IMPROVED THE GPA OF AFRICAN
AMERICAN STUDENTS.
• EXPERIMENTAL SELF-AFFIRMED; CONTROL LOOKED AT THE VALUES OF OTHERS.
• AFRICAN-AMERICANS THAT SELF AFFIRMED HAD A GPA INCREASE (NO OTHER GROUPS DID)

• STUDY 3: MARTENS ET AL 2006

• A BRIEF SELF-AFFIRMING VALUES INTERVENTION IMPROVED THE PERFORMANCE OF THE
WOMEN IN THE VALUES GROUP IN COMPARISON WITH THE WOMEN IN THE CONTROL GROUP

• NO DATA ON AFFIRMATIONS AND ANXIETY

 WAIT, I STILL DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY WE
AREN’T TRYING TO IMPROVE ALL MATH
SCORES…
ALL THREE OF THE PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED STUDIES INDICATE TWO THINGS:
1. A VALUES INTERVENTION DOES NOT SEEM TO HAVE A POSITIVE EFFECT ON
NONSTEREOTYPED DEMOGRAPHICS.
 CONSISTENT NEGATIVE IMPACT (SCHWARTZ). REASON UNKNOWN.
2. A VALUES INTERVENTION CAN REDUCE THE EFFECTS OF STEREOTYPE THREAT IN
MINORITIES AND WOMEN.
HOW DOES THIS STUDY RELATE
TO ANXIETY?

NO STUDY LOOKED AT ANXIETY OR EVEN

CONSIDERED IT…
• WHAT IF STEREOTYPE THREAT CAN BE ATTRIBUTED
TO ANXIETY
 HIGH ANX = MORE SUSCEPTIBILITY
 OR MAYBE IT’S A COINCIDENCE AND ANXIETY IS THE
TRUE CULPRIT IMPEDING ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
 WHAT IS A VALUES INTERVENTION

BASED ON ALL OF THE PAST RESEARCH – AN EXERCISE THAT GETS PARTICIPANTS TO THINK
ABOUT THEIR VALUES

SOMETIMES BY:
WRITING
READING
VIEWING MOVIES
OTHER
IN MY STUDY…
PARTICIPANTS WERE GIVEN A LIST:
ATHLETIC ABILITY
BEING GOOD AT ART
GETTING GOOD GRADES
CREATIVITY
INDEPENDENCE
LIVING IN THE MOMENT
MEMBERSHIP IN A SOCIAL GROUP
MUSIC
POLITICS
RELATIONSHIP WITH FAMILY/FRIENDS
RELIGIOUS VALUES
SENSE OF HUMOR
 VALUES INTERVENTION CONT.
• AFTER THEY MADE THEIR CHOICE, THEY HAD TO SPEND TEN MIN WRITING
ABOUT IT
• THEN EXPLAIN TWO REASONS WHY THEY CHOSE THAT VALUE
• ANSWER A FEW QUESTIONS ABOUT THE VALUE
• “IN GENERAL, I TRY TO LIVE UP TO THIS VALUE”
 Question #5 (1 point)

MEASURES What is 90% of 113?

Answer: 
• DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE
• ASKED NAME, AGE, GENDER, Question #6 (1 point)
RACE, YEAR IN SCHOOL Write the fraction as a decimal. 
34/20
• MATH TEST Answer: 
• TAKEN FROM HOMESHCHOOL.NET
Question #7 (1 point)
• ALL 7TH/8TH GRADE COURSE WORK
–10 + (–9 + 2) · (6 + 6)
Answer: 

Question #4 (1 point)

Question #8 (1 point)
What is 60% of 70?
A jar contains 79 marbles, of which 35 are blue, 29 are
red, and the rest are green. What is the ratio of green Answer: 
marbles to all marbles? 
Question #9 (1 point)
Your answer should be in standard ratio format. For
example 1:1 √(40+104)
Answer: 
Answer: 
 MEASURES - CONT
• ACHIEVEMENT ANXIETY TEST
• TWO SCALES DEBILITATING AND
FACILITATING: USED AAD
• INTERNAL CONSISTENCY RELIABILITY = .79
(AAT = .82)
• TEST RETEST RELIABILITY = .83 FOR THE
DEBILITATING SCALE
• AAD CORRELATION OF .64 TO THE TEST
ANXIETY QUESTIONNAIRE (PLAKE, 1981)
• . 38 (STATE) .56 (TRAIT) ON THE STAI (AAD)
(PLAKE, 1981)
• -.23 PREDICTIVE COEFFICIENT USING A
MATHEMATIC APTITUDE (AAD) (PLAKE, 1981)
 PROCEDURES
• MY STUDY WAS APPROVED BY THE INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD.
• PARTICIPANTS PROVIDED INFORMED CONSENT PRIOR TO PARTICIPATION.
• SESSIONS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO CONTROL OR EXPERIMENTAL
• PARTICIPANTS WERE GIVEN COPY OF CONSENT
• PARTICIPANTS WERE GIVEN PACKET
• 25 MIN FOR SURVEYS INCLUDING DEMOGRAPHICS AND ACHIEVEMENT ANXIETY
TEST
• 10 MIN FOR VALUE INTERVENTION
• 10 MIN FOR MATH TEST

• PARTICIPANTS WERE PROVIDED WITH A DEBRIEFING FORM

 SUMMARY
MY EXPERIMENT WAS DESIGNED TO SEE IF I COULD REPLICATE THE FINDINGS IN
PREVIOUS STUDIES (VALUES INTERVENTION IMPROVES ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
FOR MINORITIES/WOMEN) AND TO LOOK AT ANXIETY AS A POSSIBLE CONFOUND.

I’m sure they drank it… Because it’s only five cents.

A confound influences the data so that you cannot be sure if the result is caused by the intervention or the confound.
 RESULTS
• TOTAL OF 51 PARTICIPANTS De s c riptive S tatis tic s

• ABLE TO USE MOST OF THE DATA Dependent Variable:

MathPercent
Condition Mean Std. Deviation N
• NO OUTLIERS C 40.88 21.614 24
E 40.04 22.051 27
Total 40.43 21.632 51
OVERALL
Te s ts of Be tw e e n-S ubje c ts Effe c ts

Dependent Variable:MathPercent
Type III Sum of Partial Eta
Source Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Squared
Corrected Model 8.922 a 1 8.922 .019 .892 .000
Intercept 83182.334 1 83182.334 174.278 .000 .781
Condition 8.922 1 8.922 .019 .892 .000
Error 23387.588 49 477.298
Total 106766.000 51
Corrected Total 23396.510 50
a. R Squared = .000 (Adjusted R Squared = -.020)
MINORITIES (BLACK AND LATINO)
De s c riptive S tatis tic s

Dependent Variable:
MathPercent
Condition Mean Std. Deviation N
C 41.70 23.495 10
E 36.83 19.167 6
Total 39.88 21.438 16

Te s ts of Be tw e e n-S ubje c ts Effe c ts

Dependent Variable:MathPercent
Type III Sum of Partial Eta
Source Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Squared
Corrected Model 88.817a 1 88.817 .183 .676 .013
Intercept 23128.067 1 23128.067 47.582 .000 .773
Condition 88.817 1 88.817 .183 .676 .013
Error 6804.933 14 486.067
Total 32334.000 16
Corrected Total 6893.750 15
a. R Squared = .013 (Adjusted R Squared = -.058)
CAUCASIAN AND ASIAN
De s c riptive S tatis tic s

Dependent Variable:
MathPercent
Condition Mean Std. Deviation N
C 45.64 18.768 11
E 40.70 23.731 20
Total 42.45 21.906 31

Te s ts of Be tw e e n-S ubje c ts Effe c ts

Dependent Variable:MathPercent
Type III Sum of Partial Eta
Source Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Squared
Corrected Model 172.932 a 1 172.932 .353 .557 .012
Intercept 52899.126 1 52899.126 107.861 .000 .788
Condition 172.932 1 172.932 .353 .557 .012
Error 14222.745 29 490.439
Total 70262.000 31
Corrected Total 14395.677 30
a. R Squared = .012 (Adjusted R Squared = -.022)
GENDER ~ MALE
De s c riptive S tatis tic s

Dependent Variable:
MathPercent
Condition Mean Std. Deviation N
C 44.00 24.678 11
E 39.36 27.288 11
Total 41.68 25.500 22

Te s ts of Be tw e e n-S ubje c ts Effe c ts

Dependent Variable:MathPercent
Type III Sum of Partial Eta
Source Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Squared
Corrected Model 118.227 a 1 118.227 .175 .680 .009
Intercept 38222.227 1 38222.227 56.473 .000 .738
Condition 118.227 1 118.227 .175 .680 .009
Error 13536.545 20 676.827
Total 51877.000 22
Corrected Total 13654.773 21
a. R Squared = .009 (Adjusted R Squared = -.041)
GENDER ~ FEMALE
De s c riptive S tatis tic s

Dependent Variable:
MathPercent
Condition Mean Std. Deviation N
C 38.23 19.271 13
E 40.50 18.597 16
Total 39.48 18.595 29

Te s ts of Be tw e e n-S ubje c ts Effe c ts

Dependent Variable:MathPercent
Type III Sum of Partial Eta
Source Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Squared
Corrected Model 36.934 a 1 36.934 .103 .750 .004
Intercept 44458.451 1 44458.451 124.465 .000 .822
Condition 36.934 1 36.934 .103 .750 .004
Error 9644.308 27 357.197
Total 54889.000 29
Corrected Total 9681.241 28
a. R Squared = .004 (Adjusted R Squared = -.033)
 ANXIETY
S tatis tic s

ADDTotal
N Valid 51
Missing 0
Mean 19.12
Std. Deviation 3.260
Percentiles 25 17.00
50 18.00
75 21.00

Anyone that scored above 21 is considered high anxiety

ANXIETY~ TOP QUARTILE

De s c riptive S tatis tic s

Dependent Variable:
MathPercent
Condition Mean Std. Deviation N
C 36.00 19.391 6
E 42.75 19.117 12
Total 40.50 18.915 18

Te s ts of Be tw e e n-S ubje c ts Effe c ts

Dependent Variable:MathPercent
Type III Sum of Partial Eta
Source Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Squared
Corrected Model 182.250 a 1 182.250 .494 .492 .030
Intercept 24806.250 1 24806.250 67.268 .000 .808
Condition 182.250 1 182.250 .494 .492 .030
Error 5900.250 16 368.766
Total 35607.000 18
Corrected Total 6082.500 17
a. R Squared = .030 (Adjusted R Squared = -.031)
 DISCUSSION
• LIMITATIONS
• SAMPLE SIZE
• SELECTION OF STUDENTS
• RACE
• MATH ABILITY

• IN THE FUTURE…
• MORE DIVERSE MATH TEST
• USE MATH CLASS (SAME LEVEL)
• POST/PRE AAT
• OUTLINE THE INSTRUCTIONS

• OTHER AVENUES OF RESEARCH

• I STILL THINK ANXIETY SHOULD BE
INVESTIGATED FURTHER
• WHY DO CERTAIN GROUPS RESPOND
DIFFERENTLY?
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