Exam-related affect in undergraduate mathematics: a cluster analysis of self-efficacy, achievement emotions, and stress mindset
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Kaitlin Riegel
[1]
;
Tanya Evans
[1]
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[1] University of Auckland
University of Auckland
Nueva Zelanda
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- Localización: International journal of mathematical education in science and technology, ISSN 0020-739X, Vol. 56, Nº. 12, 2025, págs. 2473-2495
- Idioma: inglés
- DOI: 10.1080/0020739X.2025.2563117
- Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
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Resumen
The high-stakes examination persists as the dominant form of assessment in undergraduate mathematics. While concerns remain about the way achievement outcomes are influenced by students’ beliefs and emotions, little research has attended to the mathematics assessment affect. Existing studies predominantly adopt a variable-oriented approach, which often fails to consider nuanced ways in which affective constructs are distinguished and combine within individuals. Our research employed a social-cognitive lens to examine New Zealand undergraduates (N = 277) enrolled in a second-year service mathematics course. Exam-related affective profiles were identified through conducting a cluster analysis on exam-related achievement emotions, stress, self-efficacy, stress mindset, and prior achievement. We identified five different profiles, which we labelled Very Positive High Achievers, Hopeful High Achievers, Anxious High Achievers, Insecure Middling Achievers, and Stressed and Despondent Lower Achievers. These clusters demonstrated how varying combinations of affective constructs can relate to achievement and the complex affective dynamics students experience. Results indicated only the most positive students continued to succeed, recommending the potential benefits of a stress mindset intervention in positively reframing students’ beliefs about stress. Further, our findings emphasise the complexity of examination affect, which must be better addressed in future research to facilitate success in mathematics.
