Attitudes Toward Statistics and Achievement: Between Students of Science and Social Fields

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore students' attitudes toward statistics (ATS) based on the beginning and the end of learning, based on differences in fields of study, and examine its relationship with statistical acheivement. ATS was measured by an attitude instrument, namely The Survey of Attitudes toward Statistics (SATS) which consists of six dimensions (affective, cognitive competence, difficulty, value, interest, effort). Research respondents were undergraduate students who took lectures on statistical recognition that came from at one of the universities in South Sumatra. The results of the descriptive analysis showed the variation of ATS in each dimension of attitudes classified into positive, neutral, or negative attitudes. Although there are variations in the response of student attitudes in each dimension, but the results of statistical tests have not been able to show differences in attitudes between the beginning and the end of learning in each dimension. The differences in attitudes between the beginning and the end of learning that are statistically significant are in the dimensions of affective, value, and effort. The difference in the field of student science shows the difference in ATS, but only in the dimension of value. This study does not have enough evidence to state that there is a significant relationship between student attitudes to statistics and the results of learning statistics.

Comparative Study of the Attitudes of Science and Non-Science Students Towards Statistics: The Role of Statistic Anxiety

“…The study results indicate that students enrolled in science courses such as engineering, health sciences, and natural and physical sciences are more likely to perform better in statistics than those in non-science departments such as management and social sciences. The finding is aligned with a previous study (Cahyawati et al, 2018;Griffith et al, 2012). For instance, (Cahyawati et al, 2018) reported a higher mean score for science field students and a lower mean score for social field students on attitude towards statistics.…”

“…The finding is aligned with a previous study (Cahyawati et al, 2018;Griffith et al, 2012). For instance, (Cahyawati et al, 2018) reported a higher mean score for science field students and a lower mean score for social field students on attitude towards statistics.…”

“…Attitude towards statistics was measured using the Survey of Attitude toward Statistics (SATS-36) initially developed bySchau (2003). The 36 items, Linkert-type scale is scored in a 7-point format ranging from (1) strongly disagree to(7) strongly agree. Items in the scale were modified to suit the present context.…”

Evaluating the Attitudes of Real Estate Students Toward Property Valuation

“…In terms of each of the components, the reliability of Affect, Cogni ve Competence, Value, and Effort are acceptable, while Difficulty is ques onable. This conclusion is consistent with findings in other studies; nevertheless, the reliability of the difficulty component is typically the lowest, genera ng values that are in dispute (Cahyawa et al, 2018;Coetzee and Van Der Merwe, 2010;Hilton et al, 2004).…”

The effect of students’ attitudes and concerns on statistical concepts performance: A SEM approach

“…A theory is made by Gal and Garfield (1997) where the causes of statistics anxiety among students are due to lack of interest, enthusiasm, and motivation. Moreover, Cahyawati, Wahyudin, and Prabawanto (2018) mentioned that the change in students' attitudes between the beginning and end of studying statistics is significant, which involves the dimensions of value, effort, and effectiveness. Differences in attitudes that involve the only dimension of value are found in students who are from different disciplines, that is from science students.…”