Finger-digit compatibility in Arabic numeral processing.
Finger-digit response compatibility was tested by asking participants to identify Arabic digits by pressing 1 of 10 keys with all 10 fingers. The direction of the finger-digit mapping was varied by manipulating the global direction of the hand-digit mapping as well as the direction of the finger-digit mapping within each hand (in each case, from small to large digits, or the reverse). The hypothesis of a left-to-right mental number line predicted that a complete left-to-right mapping should be easier whereas the hypothesis of a representation based on finger counting predicted that a counting-congruent mapping should be easier. The results show that when all 10 fingers are used to answer, a mapping congruent with the prototypical finger-counting strategy reported by the participants leads to better performance than does a mapping congruent with a left-to-right oriented mental number line, both in palm-down and palm-up postures of the hands, and they demonstrate that finger-counting strategies influence the way that numerical information is mentally represented and processed.
Di Luca
Samuel
S
Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
Granà
Alessia
A
Semenza
Carlo
C
Seron
Xavier
X
Pesenti
Mauro
M
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D005385:Fingers / Q000502:physiology*; D006225:Hand / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008433:Mathematics; D008606:Mental Processes / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis