Department of Pedagogical and Educational Sciences, Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Utrecht University, TC Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Centre for Mathematical Cognition, School of Science, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK.
Br J Psychol. 2022 Aug;113(3):798-819. doi: 10.1111/bjop.12562. Epub 2022 Mar 29.
Previous research on sex differences in mathematical achievement shows mixed findings, which have been argued to depend on types of math tests used and the type of solution strategies (i.e., verbal versus visual-spatial) these tests evoke. The current study evaluated sex differences in (a) performance (development) on two types of math tests in primary schools and (b) the predictive value of verbal and visual-spatial working memory on math achievement. Children (N = 3175) from grades 2 through five participated. Visual-spatial and verbal working memory were assessed using online computerized tasks. Math performance was assessed five times during two school years using a speeded arithmetic test (math fluency) and a word problem test (math problem solving). Results from Multilevel Multigroup Latent Growth Modeling, showed that sex differences in level and growth of math performance were mixed and very small. Sex differences in the predictive value of verbal and visual-spatial working memory for math performance suggested that boys seemed to rely more on verbal strategies than girls. Explanations focus on cognitive and emotional factors and how these may interact to possibly amplify sex differences as children grow older.
先前关于数学成就的性别差异的研究结果不一，有人认为这取决于所使用的数学测试类型和这些测试所引发的解题策略类型（即言语与视觉空间）。本研究评估了小学两种类型的数学测试中（a）表现（发展）的性别差异，以及（b）言语和视觉空间工作记忆对数学成就的预测价值。参与者为二至五年级的 3175 名儿童。使用在线计算机任务评估视觉空间和言语工作记忆。使用快速算术测试（数学流畅性）和应用题测试（数学问题解决）在两年的两个学期中五次评估数学表现。多层次多群组潜在增长模型的结果表明，数学表现的水平和增长的性别差异是混合的，且非常小。言语和视觉空间工作记忆对数学表现的预测价值的性别差异表明，男孩似乎比女孩更多地依赖言语策略。解释侧重于认知和情感因素，以及这些因素如何相互作用，可能随着孩子年龄的增长而放大性别差异。
