Abstract
Although young children can accurately determine that two rows contain the same number of coins when they are placed in a one-to-one correspondence, children younger than 7 years of age erroneously think that the longer row contains more coins when the coins in one of the rows are spread apart. To demonstrate that prefrontal inhibitory control is necessary to succeed at this task (Piaget’s conservation-of-number task), we studied the relationship between the percentage of BOLD signal changes in the brain areas activated in this developmental task and behavioral performance on a Stroop task and a Backward Digit Span task. The level of activation in the right insula/inferior frontal gyrus was selectively related to inhibitory control efficiency (i.e., the Stroop task), whereas the activation in the left intraparietal sulcus (IPS) was selectively related to the ability to manipulate numerical information in working memory (i.e., the Backward Digit Span task). Taken together, the results indicate that to acquire number conservation, children’s brains must not only activate the reversibility of cognitive operations (supported by the IPS) but also inhibit a misleading length-equal-number strategy (supported by the right insula/inferior frontal gyrus).
Highlights
In most situations in the visual environment, when the number of objects increases, a greater portion of space is occupied
Behavioral Data We analyzed the Reaction times (RTs) from the Stroop task in a one-way repeatedmeasures analysis of variance
We found no significant correlation between the inhibitory control score and the Backward Digit Spans, suggesting that the two tasks reflect different cognitive processes, namely inhibitory control and information manipulation in working memory
Summary
In most situations in the visual environment, when the number of objects increases, a greater portion of space is occupied. Piaget’s famous conservation-of-number task [10] is a classical example of children’s inability to dissociate the number of objects in arrays from their spatial extents In this task, children first determine whether two rows containing the same number of coins placed in a one-to-one correspondence are equal in number. 15), Neo-Piagetians believe that the critical factor for success in Piaget’s numerical or logical tasks is the ability to activate the appropriate logicomathematical strategy and, and most importantly, the executive ability to inhibit misleading visuospatial heuristics (here, the ‘length-equals-number’ heuristic). Piaget did not hypothesize, based on this observation, that children need inhibitory control as an executive function of the brain (beyond logicomathematical cognition per se) to succeed at this developmental task
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
