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Numerical abstraction in infants: another look
K S Mix1, S C Levine, J Huttenlocher
1Department of Psychology, University of Chicago, USA. kmix@indiana.edu
Developmental Psychology
|May 1, 1997
Summary
Infants
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Infant Cognition
Background:
- Early research suggested infants possess numerical competence.
- Starkey, Spelke, and Gelman (1990) reported infants could match auditory and visual numerosities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To re-examine Starkey et al.'s (1990) findings on infant numerical competence.
- To investigate whether infants can perform cross-modal numerical representations.
Main Methods:
- Experiment 1: Controlled auditory sequence duration, varying number; measured infant looking time.
- Experiment 2: Varied auditory sequence rate and duration randomly within infants; measured looking time.
Main Results:
- Experiment 1: Infants preferred visual displays NOT numerically equivalent to auditory sets.
- Experiment 2: No significant preference shown when auditory parameters were randomized.
Conclusions:
- Results challenge claims of cross-modal numerical representation and one-to-one correspondence in infants.
- Methodological factors, like auditory sequence duration, may influence infant numerical processing.