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Cross‐cultural investigation into cognitive underpinnings of individual differences in early arithmetic
Author(s) -
Rodic Maja,
Zhou Xinlin,
Tikhomirova Tatiana,
Wei Wei,
Malykh Sergei,
Ismatulina Victoria,
Sabirova Elena,
Davidova Yulia,
Tosto Maria Grazia,
Lemelin JeanPascal,
Kovas Yulia
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
developmental science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.801
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1467-7687
pISSN - 1363-755X
DOI - 10.1111/desc.12204
Subject(s) - psychology , cognition , arithmetic , number sense , variance (accounting) , population , variation (astronomy) , test (biology) , cognitive psychology , developmental psychology , mathematics education , mathematics , paleontology , physics , accounting , demography , astrophysics , business , biology , neuroscience , sociology
The present study evaluated 626 5–7‐year‐old children in the UK , China, Russia, and Kyrgyzstan on a cognitive test battery measuring: (1) general skills; (2) non‐symbolic number sense; (3) symbolic number understanding; (4) simple arithmetic – operating with numbers; and (5) familiarity with numbers. Although most inter‐population differences were small, 13% of the variance in arithmetic skills could be explained by the sample, replicating the pattern, previously found with older children in PISA . Furthermore, the same cognitive skills were related to early arithmetic in these diverse populations. Only understanding of symbolic number explained variation in mathematical performance in all samples. We discuss the results in terms of potential influences of socio‐demographic, linguistic and genetic factors on individual differences in mathematics.