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Updated: May 9, 2026
07:13
A Two-interval Forced-choice Task for Multisensory Comparisons
Published on: November 9, 2018
Is approximate numerical judgment truly modality-independent? Visual, auditory, and cross-modal comparisons
Midori Tokita1, Yui Ashitani, Akira Ishiguchi
1Graduate School of Humanities and Sciences, Ochanomizu University, 2-1-1 Otsuka, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 112-8610, Japan, tokita.midori@ocha.ac.jp.
Attention, Perception & Psychophysics
|August 6, 2013
Summary
Comparing numbers across senses reveals differences. Auditory number comparisons are more precise than visual ones, with cross-modal performance falling in between. This suggests complex stages in numerical representation.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Sensory Perception
Background:
- Abstract number representation is modality-independent.
- The accumulator model predicts no cross-modal cost for numerosity comparison.
- Behavioral studies show inconsistencies in cross-modal number comparison performance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate differences in numerical comparison across visual, auditory, and cross-modal presentations.
- To control for stimulus presentation variables in numerosity tasks.
- To determine how modality affects approximate number system performance.
Main Methods:
- Measured Weber fractions and points of subjective equality for numerical discrimination.
- Compared performance in purely visual, purely auditory, and cross-modal conditions.
- Controlled stimulus presentation for accurate comparison.
Main Results:
- Auditory number discrimination was more precise than visual discrimination.
- Cross-modal performance was intermediate between visual and auditory conditions.
- Visual stimuli counts were overestimated compared to auditory stimuli counts.
Conclusions:
- Numerical comparison performance varies significantly across sensory modalities.
- Approximate numerical representation involves complex, multi-stage processes including accumulation and decision-making.
- Findings challenge the simple accumulator model's prediction of no cross-modal cost.
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