Decoding Location-specific and Location-invariant Stages of Numerosity Processing in Subitizing

Abstract Extracting the number of objects in perceived scenes is a fundamental cognitive ability. Number processing is proposed to rely on two consecutive stages: an early object location map that captures individuated objects in a location-specific way and a subsequent location-invariant representation that captures numerosity at an abstract level. However, it is unclear whether this framework applies to small numerosities that can be individuated at once ("subitized"). Here we used EEG-based multivariate pattern decoding to test for location-specific and location-invariant stages of numerosity processing in the subitizing range. In two experiments, 1-3 targets were presented in the left or right hemifield, which allowed for decoding target numerosity within each hemifield separately (location-specific) or across hemifields (location-invariant). Experiment 1 indicated the presence of a location-specific stage (180-200 ms post-stimulus), followed by a location-invariant stage (300 ms post-stimulus). Experiment 2 showed that both location-specific and invariant components are engaged only during tasks that explicitly require numerosity processing, ruling out automatic, passive recording of numerosity. Overall, the results suggest that numerosity coding in subitizing is strongly grounded on an attention-based, location-specific stage. This stage remains active in parallel with the subsequent activation of a location-invariant stage, where a full representation of numerosity is finalized.

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Linking Visual Attention and Number Processing in the Brain: The Role of the Temporo-parietal Junction in Small and Large Symbolic and Nonsymbolic Number Comparison

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn.2007.19.11.1845 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 19 (11) ◽

pp. 1845-1853 ◽

Cited By ~ 97

Author(s):

Daniel Ansari ◽

Ian M. Lyons ◽

Lucia van Eimeren ◽

Fei Xu

Keyword(s):

Response Times ◽

Neural Correlates ◽

Relative Magnitude ◽

Number Processing ◽

Subitizing Range ◽

Number Comparison ◽

Neuro Imaging ◽

The Right ◽

The Brain

There exists a long-standing debate regarding whether small and large numerosities engage different networks of processing. The ability to rapidly enumerate small (1–4) numerosities is referred to as “subitizing” and is thought to be qualitatively different from large numerosity processing. Functional neuro-imaging studies have attempted to dissociate neural correlates of small and large number processing by contrasting subitizing with counting of numerosities just outside the subitizing range. In the present study, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to contrast the processing of numerosities in the “subitizing range” with numerosities requiring estimation. Participants compared sequentially presented slides of either dots or Arabic numerals for their relative magnitude. We show that comparison of nonsymbolic numerosities in the subitizing range led to activation of the right temporo-parietal junction, while at the same time this region was found to be suppressed during large numerosity processing. Furthermore, relative suppression of this region was strongly associated with faster response times. In previous studies, this region has been implicated in stimulus-driven attention.We therefore contend that activation of the temporo-parietal junction during small number processing and the suppression thereof during large numerosity comparisons reflects differential reliance on stimulus-driven versus goal-directed attentional networks in the brain.

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A Latent State-Trait Analysis of Current Achievement Motivation Across Different Tasks of Cognitive Ability

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759/a000289 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 33 (5) ◽

pp. 318-327

Author(s):

Philipp Alexander Freund ◽

Vanessa Katharina Jaensch ◽

Franzis Preckel

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Ability ◽

Task Performance ◽

Achievement Motivation ◽

Fear Of Failure ◽

Specific Task ◽

Test Taker ◽

Specific Interest ◽

Probability Of Success ◽

Ability Tests ◽

Perceived Challenge

Abstract. The current study investigates the behavior of task-specific, current achievement motivation (CAM: interest in the task, probability of success, perceived challenge, and fear of failure) across a variety of reasoning tasks featuring verbal, numerical, and figural content. CAM is conceptualized as a state-like variable, and in order to assess the relative stability of the four CAM variables across different tasks, latent state trait analyses are conducted. The major findings indicate that the degree of challenge a test taker experiences and the fear of failing a given task appear to be relatively stable regardless of the specific task utilized, whereas interest and probability of success are more directly influenced by task-specific characteristics and demands. Furthermore, task performance is related to task-specific interest and probability of success. We discuss the implications and benefits of these results with regard to the use of cognitive ability tests in general. Importantly, taking motivational differences between test takers into account appears to offer valuable information which helps to explain differences in task performance.

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Sex Differences in Childhood Associations between DNA Markers and General Cognitive Ability

Journal of Individual Differences ◽

10.1027/1614-0001.28.3.161 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 28 (3) ◽

pp. 161-164 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rosalind Arden ◽

Nicole Harlaar ◽

Robert Plomin

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽

Cognitive Ability ◽

Dna Markers ◽

Community Sample ◽

Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽

General Cognitive Ability ◽

Single Nucleotide ◽

The Difference

Abstract. An association between intelligence at age 7 and a set of five single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) has been identified and replicated. We used this composite SNP set to investigate whether the associations differ between boys and girls for general cognitive ability at ages 2, 3, 4, 7, 9, and 10 years. In a longitudinal community sample of British twins aged 2-10 (n > 4,000 individuals), we found that the SNP set is more strongly associated with intelligence in males than in females at ages 7, 9, and 10 and the difference is significant at 10. If this finding replicates in other studies, these results will constitute the first evidence of the same autosomal genes acting differently on intelligence in the two sexes.

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A Meta-Analysis of Interviews and Cognitive Ability

Journal of Personnel Psychology ◽

10.1027/1866-5888/a000091 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 157-169 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Philip L. Roth ◽

Allen I. Huffcutt

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Ability ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Incremental Validity ◽

Employment Interviews ◽

Moderator Analysis ◽

The Future ◽

Research Questions ◽

Meta Analyses ◽

The Relationship

The topic of what interviews measure has received a great deal of attention over the years. One line of research has investigated the relationship between interviews and the construct of cognitive ability. A previous meta-analysis reported an overall corrected correlation of .40 ( Huffcutt, Roth, & McDaniel, 1996 ). A more recent meta-analysis reported a noticeably lower corrected correlation of .27 ( Berry, Sackett, & Landers, 2007 ). After reviewing both meta-analyses, it appears that the two studies posed different research questions. Further, there were a number of coding judgments in Berry et al. that merit review, and there was no moderator analysis for educational versus employment interviews. As a result, we reanalyzed the work by Berry et al. and found a corrected correlation of .42 for employment interviews (.15 higher than Berry et al., a 56% increase). Further, educational interviews were associated with a corrected correlation of .21, supporting their influence as a moderator. We suggest a better estimate of the correlation between employment interviews and cognitive ability is .42, and this takes us “back to the future” in that the better overall estimate of the employment interviews – cognitive ability relationship is roughly .40. This difference has implications for what is being measured by interviews and their incremental validity.

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A Multimedia Situational Test With a Constructed-Response Format

Journal of Personnel Psychology ◽

10.1027/1866-5888/a000035 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 78-88 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Janneke K. Oostrom ◽

Marise Ph. Born ◽

Alec W. Serlie ◽

Henk T. van der Molen

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Ability ◽

Computer Technology ◽

Psychology Students ◽

Learning Activities ◽

Ability Test ◽

Constructed Response ◽

Job Experience ◽

Relationship Of ◽

The Relationship ◽

Situational Test

Advances in computer technology have created opportunities for the development of a multimedia situational test in which responses are filmed with a webcam. This paper examined the relationship of a so-called webcam test with personality, cognitive ability, job experience, and academic performance. Data were collected among 153 psychology students. In line with our expectations, scores on the webcam test, intended to measure interpersonally oriented leadership, were related to extraversion, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and job experience. Furthermore, the webcam tests significantly predicted students’ learning activities during group meetings over and above a cognitive ability test and a personality questionnaire. Overall, this study demonstrates that webcam tests can be a valid complement to traditional predictors in selection contexts.

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