MATHEMATICS ANXIETY AS A FACTOR OF COGNITIVE BARRIER IN THE TRAINING OF PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS

Abstract

The article explores the pressing issue of overcoming mathematical anxiety among higher education students majoring in psychology during the study of applied mathematical methods. Historically, teaching statistics in the humanities relied heavily on complex software packages like SPSS or its free equivalent, PSPP. However, the multi-window architecture, separated data and output screens, and unintuitive menus of such programs act as severe cognitive barriers. This technical complexity exacerbates mathematical anxiety, shifting students' focus from understanding statistical logic to merely memorizing rigid navigation algorithms. To address this challenge, the present study introduces an empirical survey conducted among a target group of psychology students. This survey quantitatively measures their levels of mathematical anxiety and perceived cognitive load when processing data using two distinct free software solutions: the traditional PSPP and the modern open-source platform jamovi. The comparative analysis clearly reveals that working in jamovi drastically reduces stress manifestations among the surveyed students. This significant positive pedagogical effect is achieved primarily through its user-centric, single-window interface and the real-time dynamic updating of analytical results whenever raw data is modified. By eliminating the constant fear of making a technical mistake, jamovi lowers the barrier to entry for statistical analysis. The findings clearly prove that transitioning to user-friendly analytical software during practical classes facilitates a fundamental pedagogical shift. Consequently, students are empowered to concentrate on the meaningful psychological interpretation of their empirical research results rather than struggling with restrictive technical software barriers.