A study was done to compare Asian American and Anglo American students' attitudes toward motivation, learning environment, academic self-concept, involvement, affiliation, and parent involvement in the learning of mathematics. Survey data of 1,200 Asian- and 1,200 Anglo-American middle school students were collected. A stratified sampling technique was attempted to include an equal number of students of each gender and grade within each ethic group. Three standardized instruments were adapted and administered concurrently by trained researchers during regular mathematics class. Data were analyzed with a three-way multivariate analysis. The results indicate that there are significant differences in motivation and perceptions of learning environment by students' ethnicity, gender, and grade-level. Asian American students demonstrated greater pride in their class work, a stronger desire to succeed, and higher expectations to do well in mathematics. They also enjoyed mathematics class and assignments more than did Anglo-American students and were more participative and attentive in class activities. Asian-American parents were usually more interested and more involved in what their children were doing in mathematics than were Anglo-American parents. Girls had higher motivation and more positive perceptions of their learning environment in mathematics than did boys. Contains 2 tables and 42 references. (JB)