not good at math? (Outliers/Gadwell)

[ryoder]

Math is not easy. When I struggle with math, I almost hyperventilate. It is a problem for me. The best cure for this problem, however, is more math practice. My MBA stats class freaked me out so much that I woke up early every morning to read and work on the assignments. I ended up finishing the class in 5 weeks instead of 8, and did so with an A. To this day, I fear the PhD dissertation process because of the requirement to do a lot of statistics. I don't know why, but math freaks me out. I am a computer programmer and have been through calculus IV in engineering school, but the subject still scares the daylights out of me.
It is really the fear of failure I think that stops people dead in their tracks.

I am a big believer in the expectancy-value theory. Therefore, most of us do not try hard at learning math because we fear failure and we have been conditioned to believe that math is unnecessary and of little value.

According to the “expectancy-value theory” a learner’s motivation is determined by how much they value the goal, and whether they expect to succeed.

Teachers toolbox - Expectancy-value Theory of Motivation