Numerical representations are neither abstract nor automatic.
In this commentary, I support and augment Cohen Kadosh & Walsh's (CK&W's) argument that numerical representations are not abstract. I briefly review data that support the non-abstract nature of the representation of numbers between zero and one, and I discuss how a failure to test alternative hypotheses has led researchers to erroneously conclude that numerals automatically activate their semantic meaning.
Cohen
Dale J
DJ
Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina-Wilmington, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA. cohend@uncw.edu
D003071:Cognition; D034462:Dissent and Disputes; D006801:Humans; D008433:Mathematics; D012108:Research Personnel; D012660:Semantics