Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Neural Correlates of Math Anxiety of Consumer Choices on Price Promotions

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Book cover Advances in Neuroergonomics and Cognitive Engineering (AHFE 2018)

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 775))

Included in the following conference series:

  • 1190 Accesses

Abstract

Math anxiety is a problem that faces most people in their everyday life. Past research suggests that math anxiety can lead consumers to make errors in numerical computations. In this study, we utilized brain-based measures for the assessment of math anxiety in relationship to price perceptions. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) from the prefrontal cortex was measured to determine differences in responses between high and low math anxiety participants. Participants performed two tasks under load and no-load conditions performing math calculations in relation to a price promotion. Preliminary results indicate that there is a performance difference between low and high math anxiety participants in both oxygenated hemoglobin results and behavioral performance. This study outlines a new method for determining how math anxiety affects consumers’ decisions regarding prices.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Hembree, R.: The nature, effects, and relief of mathematics anxiety. J. Res. Math. Educ. 21(1), 33–46 (1990)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Ashcraft, M.: Math anxiety: personal, educational, and cognitive consequences. Curr. Dir. Psychol. Sci. 11(5), 181–185 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Blazer, C.: Strategies for reducing math anxiety. Inf. Capsule 1102, 1–8 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  4. Maloney, E., Beilock, S.: Math anxiety: who has it, why it develops, and how to guard against it. Trends Cogn. Sci. 16(8), 404–406 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Wang, Z., et al.: Who is afraid of math? Two sources of genetic variance for mathematical anxiety. J. Child Psychol. Psychiatr. 55(9), 1056–1064 (2014)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Ashcraft, M., Kirk, E.: The relationships among working memory, math anxiety, and performance. J. Exp. Psychol. 130(2), 224–237 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Young, C.B., Wu, S.S., Menon, V.: The neurodevelopmental basis of math anxiety. Psychol. Sci. 23(5), 492–501 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Peters, E., Vastfjall, D., Slovic, P., Mertz, C.K., Mazzocco, K., Dickert, S.: Numeracy and decision making. Psychol. Sci. 17(5), 407–413 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Bayer, R.-C., Ke, C.: Discounts and consumer search behavior: the role of framing. J. Econ. Psychol. 39, 215–224 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. McKechnie, J.D., Ennew, C., Smith, A.: Effects of discount framing in comparative price advertising. Eur. J. Mark. 46(11/12), 1501–1522 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Darke, P.R., Chung, C.M.Y.: Effects of pricing and promotion on consumer perceptions: it depends on how you frame it. J. Retail. 81(1), 35–47 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Krishna, A., Briesch, R., Lehmann, D., Yuan, H.: A meta-analysis of price presentation on perceived savings. J. Retail. 78, 101–118 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Jones, W.J., Childers, T.L., Jiang, Y.: The shopping brain: math anxiety modulates brain responses to buying decisions. Biol. Psychol. 89(1), 201–213 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Lowe, B., Maxwell, S.: Consumer perceptions of extra free product promotions and discounts: the moderating role of perceived performance risk. J. Prod. Brand Manag. 19(7), 496–503 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Izzetoglu, K., Ayaz, H., Merzagora, A., Izzetoglu, M., Shewokis, P.A., Bunce, S.C., Pourrezaei, K., Rosen, A., Onaral, B.: The evolution of field deployable fNIR spectroscopy from bench to clinical settings. J. Innov. Opt. Health Sci. 4, 1–12 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Ayaz, H., Shewokis, P.A., Bunce, S., Onaral, B.: An optical brain computer interface for environmental control. In: IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, EMBC, pp. 6327–6330 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  17. Ayaz, H., Onaral, B., Izzetoglu, K., Shewokis, P.A., McKendrick, R., Parasuraman, R.: Continuous monitoring of brain dynamics with functional near infrared spectroscopy as a tool for neuroergonomic research: empirical examples and a technological development. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 7, 871 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Izzetoglu, M., Izzetoglu, K., Bunce, S., Ayaz, H., Devaraj, A., Onaral, B., Pourezzaei, K.: Functional near-infrared neuroimaging. IEEE Trans. Neural Syst. Rehabil. Eng. 12(2), 153–159 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Fishburn, F.A., Norr, M.E., Medvedev, A.V., Vaidya, C.J.: Sensitivity of fNIRS to cognitive state and load. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 8, 76 (2014)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. McKendrick, R., et al.: Into the wild: neuroergonomic differentiation of hand-held and augmented reality wearable displays during outdoor navigation with functional near infrared spectroscopy. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 10, 216 (2016)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Suri, R., Monroe, K.B., Koc, U.: Math anxiety and its effects on consumers’ preference for price promotion formats. J. Acad. Mark. Sci. 41(3), 271–282 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Gamliel, E., Herstein, R.: To save or to lose: does framing price promotion affect consumers’ purchase intentions? J. Consum. Mark. 28(2), 152–158 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Diamond, W.: Just what is a “dollar’s worth”? consumer reactions to price discounts vs. extra product promotions. J. Retail. 68(3), 254–270 (1992)

    Google Scholar 

  24. Beilock, S., Willingham, D.: Math anxiety: can teachers help students reduce it? Am. Educ. 38, 28–32 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  25. Ashcraft, M., Krause, J.: Working memory, math performance and math anxiety. Psychon. Bull. Rev. 14(2), 243–248 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Alexander, L., Martray, C.R.: The development of an abbreviated version of the mathematics anxiety rating scale. Meas. Eval. Couns. Dev. 22, 143–150 (1989)

    Google Scholar 

  27. Cacioppo, J.T., Petty, R.E.: The need for cognition. J. Pers. Soc. Psychol. 42, 116–131 (1982)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Richardson, F.C., Suinn, R.M.: The mathematics anxiety rating scale. J. Couns. Psychol. 19, 551–554 (1972)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Ayaz, H., Shewokis, P.A., Bunce, S., Izzetoglu, K., Willems, B., Onaral, B.: Optical brain monitoring for operator training and mental workload assessment. NeuroImage 59(1), 36–47 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Ayaz, H., Shewokis, P.A., Curtin, A., Izzetoglu, M., Izzetoglu, K., Onaral, B.: Using MazeSuite and functional near infrared spectroscopy to study learning in spatial navigation. J. Vis. Exp. (56), 3443 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Amanda Sargent, Atahan Agrali, Kurtulus Izzetoglu, Banu Onaral & Hasan Ayaz

  2. LeBow College of Business, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Siddharth Bhatt, Hongjun Ye & Rajneesh Suri

  3. Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3101 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Hasan Ayaz

  4. Division of General Pediatrics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 3401 Civic Center Blvd, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Hasan Ayaz

Authors
  1. Amanda Sargent
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Atahan Agrali
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Siddharth Bhatt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hongjun Ye
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Kurtulus Izzetoglu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Banu Onaral
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Hasan Ayaz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Rajneesh Suri
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Amanda Sargent .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

    Hasan Ayaz

  2. University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

    Lukasz Mazur

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Sargent, A. et al. (2019). Neural Correlates of Math Anxiety of Consumer Choices on Price Promotions. In: Ayaz, H., Mazur, L. (eds) Advances in Neuroergonomics and Cognitive Engineering. AHFE 2018. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 775. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94866-9_15

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation