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Finger-Based Numerical Skills Link Fine Motor Skills to Numerical Development in Preschoolers
Sebastian Suggate1, Heidrun Stoeger1, Ursula Fischer1
11 University of Regensburg, Germany.
Perceptual and Motor Skills
|September 13, 2017
Summary
Fine-motor skills (FMS) are closely linked to early math abilities, particularly those involving finger counting. This connection highlights the importance of finger representation in developing numerical skills in preschoolers.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
- Educational Neuroscience
Background:
- Previous research on fine-motor skills (FMS) and mathematical abilities lacked specific focus.
- The precise mechanisms linking FMS to early numerical skills remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the specific role of finger representations in the association between FMS and early numerical skills.
- To determine if FMS influence numerical skills through finger-based processing.
Main Methods:
- Assessed FMS and numerical skills in 81 preschoolers (mean age 4 years, 9 months).
- Included numerical tasks with and without a finger focus.
- Controlled for receptive vocabulary and chronological age.
Main Results:
- FMS showed a stronger association with finger-based numerical skills than non-finger-based skills.
- The relationship between FMS and overall numerical skill was fully mediated by finger-based numerical skills.
- Findings held true even after controlling for vocabulary and age.
Conclusions:
- Fine-motor skills are integral to early numerical development, specifically through finger-based counting.
- Finger representation in early mathematics is a key mediator for the FMS-numerical skill link.
- This suggests FMS support the acquisition of mathematical mental representations via finger-based processes.
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