Graduate Studies, UNL

 

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

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First Advisor

Jenna Finch

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Committee Members

Anne Schutte, Carrie Clark, Rebecca Brock

Department

Sociology

Date of this Version

7-14-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Citation

A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Graduate College at the University of Nebraska in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy

Major: Sociology

Under the supervision of Professor Jenna Finch

Lincoln, Nebraska, May 2024

Comments

Copyright 2024, Kimia Akhavein. Used by permission

Abstract

Existing research indicates that parents’ math anxiety is a robust predictor of children’s math achievement and math anxiety. The current dissertation study moved the literature forward by examining the transmission of parents’ math anxiety to children’s math achievement and math anxiety via autonomy-supportive and controlling parenting behaviors using an observational coding scheme during a homework help task when children were in second grade. The first research aim examined if parents’ autonomy supportive and controlling behaviors mediated the link between parents’ math anxiety and children’s math achievement and math anxiety one year later. The second research aim examined whether parents’ emotion regulation moderated the association between parents’ math anxiety and parenting behaviors. The third research aim examined whether children’s executive functions moderated the link between autonomy-supportive and controlling parenting behaviors and children’s math achievement and math anxiety, to understand how the association between parenting behaviors and children’s math outcomes differs for children with varying cognitive skills. Results from the first aim indicated that higher levels of parents’ math anxiety were associated with more controlling parenting behaviors, over and above autonomy support. While higher levels of autonomy support were associated with higher levels of children’s math achievement, higher levels of control were associated with lower levels of children’s math achievement. However, neither parents’ math anxiety nor parenting behaviors were significantly associated with children’s math anxiety. Following the inclusion of robust control variables, parents used higher levels of autonomy-supportive behaviors for children with higher math skills and higher levels of controlling behaviors for children with lower math skills. Results from the second aim indicated that parents’ emotion regulation did not significantly moderate the link between parents’ math anxiety and parenting behaviors. The third aim found that children’s EFs significantly moderated the link between controlling parenting behaviors and children’s math achievement prior to the inclusion of robust control variables. However, this association disappeared when accounting for children’s prior math achievement. Overall, this study underscores the relevancy of parents’ math anxiety and math achievement for their parenting behaviors and highlights the bidirectional associations between controlling parenting behaviors and children’s math achievement.

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