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Magnitude processing of written number words is influenced by task, rather than notation
Becky Wong1, Rebecca Bull1, Daniel Ansari2
1National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
Acta Psychologica
|October 5, 2018
Summary
Numerical magnitude processing depends on the task, not the notation used (English or Chinese). While task and notation interact to influence processing speed, magnitude processing itself remains independent of notation.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Psycholinguistics
- Numerical Cognition
Background:
- The influence of task and notation on numerical magnitude processing is debated.
- Behavioral studies show mixed evidence regarding this influence.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how task and notation affect numerical magnitude processing.
- To examine the role of English and Chinese number words in this process.
Main Methods:
- Thirty-nine bilingual participants completed Magnitude Comparison, Numerical Matching, and Language Matching tasks.
- Used pure English, pure Chinese, and mixed notation number words.
- Analyzed data using frequentist and Bayesian statistics.
Main Results:
- Magnitude processing, indicated by the numerical distance effect (NDE), was task-dependent but notation-independent.
- Task and notation interacted to influence overall processing speed, with Chinese number words processed faster in certain tasks.
- Bayesian analyses supported a model with main effects of Task, Notation, and Numerical Distance, and interactions between Task and Numerical Distance, and Task and Notation.
Conclusions:
- Task critically influences numerical magnitude processing.
- Magnitude processing is independent of notation.
- Linguistic/orthographic factors and task interact to affect processing speed.
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