Assessing the Moderating Effect of Gender on the Influence of Attitude towards Statistics Anxiety among Undergraduates Students in Malaysia

Abstract

This study examined the moderating effect of gender on the influence of attitude towards statics anxiety with a sample of Malaysian undergraduates (n=463) from three local universities using purposive sampling framework. The Students Attitude towards Statistics (SATS) and the Statistical Anxiety Scale (SAS) were employed for this purpose. Results from the Hayes' PROCESS macro showed that despite having significantly higher mean score on SATS, attitude only explained 1.8% of the variance in statistical anxiety and did not moderate the relationship between the two variables. We consider that this is a positive finding since efforts to reduce statistical anxiety through nurturing a positive attitude does not affect by gender.