Do genuinely numerical computational abilities exist in infancy? It has recently been argued that previous studies putatively illustrating infants' ability to add and subtract tapped into specialized object-tracking processes apply only with small numbers. This argument contrasts the original interpretation successful performance was achieved via a system for estimating calculating magnitudes. Here, we report when continuous variables (such as area contour length) are controlled, 9-month-old...

Human infants appear to be capable of the rudimentary mathematical operations addition, subtraction, and ordering. To determine whether are extracting ratios, we presented 6-month-old with multiple examples a single ratio. After repeated presentations this ratio, were new as well previously habituated Infants able successfully discriminate two ratios that differed by factor 2, but failed detect difference between numerical 1.5. We conclude can extract common ratio across test scenes use...

Links between spatial and numerical thinking are well established in studies of adult cognition. Here, we review recent research on the origins development these links, with an emphasis formative role experience typical theoretical insights to be gained from infant This points three important influences spatial-numerical associations: innate mechanisms linking space nonsymbolic number, gross fine motor activity that couples location both symbolic culturally bound activities (e.g., reading,...

Little is known about whether and how parents can foster their children's spontaneous focus on number, an unprompted measure of attention to small numbers objects that predicts later math achievement. In the current study, we asked 54 preschool-aged children play together in a museum exhibit using either numerical prompt or nonnumerical (control condition). Before after playing with parent, completed assessments individual differences tendency spontaneously number. After whose received...

This study explored the criteria that children and adults use when evaluating niceness of a character who is distributing resources. Four- five-year-olds played 'Giving Game', in which two puppets with different amounts chips each gave some portion these to children. Adults an analogous task mimicked situations presented Giving Game. For all groups participants, we manipulated absolute amount proportion given away. We found used cues establish puppet was nicer: 4-year-olds focused...

The operational momentum (OM) effect describes a systematic bias in estimating the outcomes of simple addition and subtraction problems. Outcomes problems are overestimated while underestimated. origin OM remains debated. First, flawed uncompression numerical information during course mental arithmetic is supposed to cause due linear operations on compressed magnitude code. Second, attentional shifts along number line thought OM. A third hypothesis explains 9-month olds by cognitive...

ABSTRACT Longitudinal spatial language intervention studies have shown that greater exposure to improves children's performance on tasks. Can short naturalistic, interactions also evoke improved performance? In this study, parents were asked interact with their child at a block wall exhibit in museum. Some instructed emphasize formal shape terms, others goals, and some not provided scripts. Children presented series of reasoning tasks before after parental interaction, the amount type during...

Humans and nonhuman animals appear to share a capacity for nonverbal quantity representations. But what are the limits of these abilities? Results previous research with human infants suggest that ontological status an entity as object or substance affects infants' ability quantify it. We ask whether same is true another primate species-the New World monkey Cebus apella. tested capuchin monkeys' select greater two quantities either discrete objects nonsolid substance. Participants performed...

American and Israeli toddler–caregiver dyads (mean age of toddler = 26 months) were presented with naturalistic tasks in which they must watch a short video ( N 97) or concoct visual story together 66). English‐speaking caregivers more likely to use left right spatial structuring than left, especially for well‐ordered letters numbers. Hebrew‐speaking parents Americans structuring, letters. When constructing pictorial narrative their children, place pictures from Israelis. These structure...

Abstract Much research supports the existence of an Approximate Number System ( ANS ) that is recruited by infants, children, adults, and non‐human animals to generate coarse, non‐symbolic representations number. This system simple arithmetic operations such as addition, subtraction, ordering amounts. The current study tests whether intuition a more complex calculation, division, exists in indigene group Amazon, Mundurucu, whose language includes no words for large numbers. Mundurucu...

OPINION article Front. Psychol., 29 March 2018Sec. Developmental Psychology Volume 9 - 2018 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00415

A large body of literature shows that non-human animals master a variety numerical tasks, but studies involving proportional discrimination are sparse and primarily done with mature animals. Here we trained 4-day-old domestic chicks (Gallus gallus) to respond stimuli depicting multiple examples the proportion 4:1 when compared 2:1. Stimuli were composed green red dot arrays; for rewarded proportion, 4 dots every (e.g. ratios: 32:8, 12:3, 44:11). The birds continued discriminate presented new...

When adding or subtracting two quantities, adults often compute an estimated outcome that is larger smaller, respectively, than the actual outcome, a bias referred to as “operational momentum”. The effects of attention on operational momentum were investigated. Participants viewed display in which arrays objects added, one array was subtracted from another array, and judged whether subsequent (probe) contained correct incorrect number objects. In baseline condition, only be added viewed....

Children without formal education in addition and subtraction are able to perform multi-step operations over an approximate number of objects. Further, their performance improves when solving (but not exact) problems that allow for inversion as a shortcut (e.g., + b − = a). The current study examines children's ability operations, the potential benefit, approximate, non-symbolic multiplication division. were trained compute division scaling factor (*2 or /2, *4 /4), then tested on combined...

Toddlers performed a spatial mapping task in which they were required to learn the location of hidden object vertical array and then transpose this information 90° horizontal array. During training, given (a) no labels, (b) alphabetical or (c) numerical labels for each potential location. After was transposed become continuum, children who provided with during training those heard formed strong memory location, selectively chose corresponding left-to-right bias. Children received concurrent...

An implicit mapping of number to space via a “mental line” occurs automatically in adulthood. Here, we systematically explore the influence differing representations quantity (no quantity, non-symbolic magnitudes, and symbolic numbers) directional flow stimuli (random flow, left-to-right, or right-to-left) on learning attention match-to-sample working memory task. When recalling cognitively demanding string spatial locations, subjects performed best when information was presented...

Abstract Forty‐eight newborn infants were tested in one of three multimodal stimulus conditions, which auditory quantities presented alongside visual object arrays two test trials. These tests varied with respect to side (either left or right) numerically matched the number. The looked longer trials display exhibited a quantity that quantity. This study provides first evidence for an untrained, innate bias humans preferentially process information field vision.