The Abbreviated Math Anxiety Scale (AMAS): Applicability and Utility in a Sample of Japanese Elementary School Children

Math anxiety negatively affects math performance and future career choices in math-related fields. Various tools assess math anxiety, but the Abbreviated Math Anxiety Scale (AMAS) is noteworthy for its ease of administration and good psychometric properties. This study evaluates the AMAS's applicability and utility in a sample of approximately 170 Japanese elementary-school children. Findings indicate that the Japanese version of the AMAS has very good internal consistency, good test-retest reliability and validity, both convergent and concurrent. Results from a multigroup analysis showed that the scale shows no gender bias, although girls scored higher on the AMAS despite similar performance to boys on a standardised math test. These findings highlight the AMAS's potential as a screening tool for math anxiety in young children.