Electrophysiological Evidence for A Number–Action Mapping in Infancy

Abstract

In the last decades, a growing body of literature has focused on the link between number and action. Many studies conducted on adult participants have provided evidence for a bidirectional influence between numerosity processing and grasping or reaching actions. However, it is not yet clear whether this link is functional in early infancy. Here, we used the event-related potential (ERP) technique to record electrical activity of the brain in response to number–hand pairings. We implemented a cueing paradigm where 3- to 4-month-old infants observed images showing either congruency (e.g., a large numerosity primed by a large hand opening) or incongruency (e.g., a large numerosity primed by a small hand opening). Infants’ brain activity was modulated by the congruency of the pairings: amplitudes recorded over frontal and parietal-occipital scalp positions differed for congruent versus incongruent pairings. These findings suggest that the association between number and hand action processing is already functional early in life.

Challenges in Understanding Numerical Learning: Editorial for Brain Sciences Special Issue “Neurocognitive Signatures of Math (Learning) across the Lifespan and Their Interrelation with Other Aspects of Cognition and Emotion”

“…A second set of studies investigated the neuro-cognitive influence of embodied cognition on typical numerical development . Employing EEG in 3-to-4-month-old infants, Decarli et al [ 8 ] found evidence for a neuro-functional link between numerosity processing and hand action processing. With the help of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in a mental arithmetic training in first graders, Artemenko et al [ 9 ] were able to link the effects of a finger-based training on mental arithmetic (i.e., training-induced facilitation of subbase-5 carry operations) and the activation in the sensorimotor cortex in trained children, suggesting training-induced sensorimotor plasticity in brain development.…”