abstract

The proposed quasi-experimental study explores the effects of mathematics anxiety on the mental health of mathematics students in higher secondary level in West Bengal, India. Seventy students in government-aided schools in the North 24 Parganas and Kolkata districts were chosen and 35 of them were put in an experimental group to be subjected to cognitive-behavioral intervention and 35 in a control group to receive normal instruction. The West Bengal Adolescent Mental Health Scale (WBAMHS) was used to determine mental health both before and after 6 weeks of intervention. Findings revealed that the results were significantly higher in the experimental (pre-test mean: 43.67, post-test mean: 63.60) than in the control (pre-test mean: 42.63, post-test mean: 48.55) group. The intervention showed the big effect size (Cohen d = 1.82), which means that the specific psychological support can be used to reduce mathematics anxiety and enhance the overall mental well-being of mathematics learners. The results indicate that there is an immediate necessity of considering mental health support in mathematics education programs in West Bengal.