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Updated: May 19, 2026
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Multimedia Battery for Assessment of Cognitive and Basic Skills in Mathematics (BM-PROMA)
Published on: August 28, 2021
Arithmetic word problem solving: evidence for a magnitude-based mental representation.
Josetxu Orrantia1, David Múñez
1Department of Educational and Developmental Psychology, Universidad de Salamanca, Paseo de Canalejas 169, 37008 Salamanca, Spain. orrantia@usal.es
Memory & Cognition
|August 18, 2012
Summary
Solving arithmetic word problems activates a mental simulation of numerical magnitude. This simulation, based on analog magnitude representation, impacts problem-solving performance and comprehension.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience of Language
- Mathematical Cognition
Background:
- Number processing relies on mental representations of numerical magnitude.
- Reading comprehension involves constructing mental simulations incorporating sensory experiences.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if arithmetic word-problem solving involves constructing a mental simulation based on numerical magnitude.
- To explore the link between magnitude representation and word-problem solving performance.
Main Methods:
- Participants solved arithmetic word problems.
- An intermediate figure discrimination task assessed the match between presented figures and internally constructed magnitude representations.
- Performance was measured by reaction times in discrimination and accuracy in problem-solving.
Main Results:
- Participants showed faster discrimination task performance when figures matched their mental magnitude representations.
- Problem-solving accuracy improved when figures aligned with these representations.
- Results indicate the activation of analog magnitude-based mental representations during word-problem solving.
Conclusions:
- Arithmetic word-problem solving routinely activates analog magnitude-based mental representations.
- This supports the experiential view of language comprehension, highlighting the role of simulation in understanding numerical concepts.
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