Developmental cognitive neuropsychology of number processing and calculation: varieties of developmental dyscalculia

This chapter provides an overview of the evidence on grammatical number processing taken from cognitive neuropsychology, including developmental delays and impairments of language (e.g. developmental language disorder, and Williams syndrome) and aphasia, an acquired language impairment after brain injury. These types of language impairment can give insight into the functional architecture of nominal number processing by looking at error patterns that arise in each of the aforementioned populations. By classifying observed responses in language production tasks into non-number and number errors, we are able to reveal underlying mechanisms of syntactic rules and their representations when they develop, but also learn about processes and representation of number when this information breaks down.

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Neural Correlates of Symbolic Number Comparison in Developmental Dyscalculia

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn.2009.21237 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 22 (5) ◽

pp. 860-874 ◽

Cited By ~ 111

Author(s):

Christophe Mussolin ◽

Anne De Volder ◽

Cécile Grandin ◽

Xavier Schlögel ◽

Marie-Cécile Nassogne ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Number Processing ◽

Numerical Distance ◽

Comparison Task ◽

Developmental Dyscalculia ◽

Disability History ◽

Magnitude Processing ◽

Number Magnitude ◽

Number Comparison ◽

The Right ◽

Symbolic Number

Developmental dyscalculia (DD) is a deficit in number processing and arithmetic that affects 3–6% of schoolchildren. The goal of the present study was to analyze cerebral bases of DD related to symbolic number processing. Children with DD aged 9–11 years and matched children with no learning disability history were investigated using fMRI. The two groups of children were controlled for general cognitive factors, such as working memory, reading abilities, or IQ. Brain activations were measured during a number comparison task on pairs of Arabic numerals and a color comparison task on pairs of nonnumerical symbols. In each task, pairs of stimuli that were close or far on the relevant dimension were constituted. Brain activation in bilateral intraparietal sulcus (IPS) was modulated by numerical distance in controls but not in children with DD. Moreover, although the right IPS responded to numerical distance only, the left IPS was influenced by both numerical and color distances in control children. Our findings suggest that dyscalculia is associated with impairment in areas involved in number magnitude processing and, to a lesser extent, in areas dedicated to domain-general magnitude processing.

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Basic number processing deficits in developmental dyscalculia: Evidence from eye tracking

Cognitive Development ◽

10.1016/j.cogdev.2009.09.007 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 24 (4) ◽

pp. 371-386 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

K. Moeller ◽

S. Neuburger ◽

L. Kaufmann ◽

K. Landerl ◽

H.-C. Nuerk

Keyword(s):

Eye Tracking ◽

Basic Number ◽

Number Processing ◽

Developmental Dyscalculia ◽

Processing Deficits

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Developmental Dyscalculia

Zeitschrift für Psychologie ◽

10.1027/2151-2604/a000205 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 223 (2) ◽

pp. 69-82 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Jörg-Tobias Kuhn

Keyword(s):

Number Processing ◽

Cognitive Resources ◽

Cognitive Profiles ◽

Developmental Dyscalculia ◽

Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Magnitude Processing ◽

Specific Learning Disorder ◽

Behavioral Evidence ◽

Fact Retrieval

Developmental dyscalculia (DD) is a specific learning disorder that affects the acquisition of arithmetic skills and number processing in children. A high comorbidity between DD and other neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., dyslexia, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder [ADHD]) as well as substantial heterogeneity in cognitive profiles have been reported. Current studies indicate that DD is persistent, has a genetic component, and is related to functional and structural alterations of brain areas involved in magnitude representation. Recent neuronal and behavioral evidence is presented, showing that DD entails (a) impairments in two preverbal core systems of number, an approximate system for estimating larger magnitudes and an exact system for representing small magnitudes, (b) deficits in symbolic number processing, (c) aberrant and nonadaptive neuronal activation in basic magnitude processing and calculation, (d) dysfunctional arithmetic fact retrieval and persistent use of counting strategies in calculation, and (e) deficits in visuospatial working memory and the central executive. Finally, open research questions, including the role of domain-general cognitive resources in DD, causes and developmental consequences of comorbidity, as well as design and evaluation of interventions for DD, are briefly discussed.

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