Weaker number sense accounts for impaired numerosity perception in dyscalculia: Behavioral and computational evidence.

Impaired numerosity perception in developmental dyscalculia (low "number acuity") has been interpreted as evidence of reduced representational precision in the neurocognitive system supporting non-symbolic number sense. However, recent studies suggest that poor numerosity judgments might stem from stronger interference from non-numerical visual information, in line with alternative accounts that highlight impairments in executive functions and visuospatial abilities in the etiology of dyscalculia. To resolve this debate, we used a psychophysical method designed to disentangle the contribution of numerical and non-numerical features to explicit numerosity judgments in a dot comparison task and we assessed the relative saliency of numerosity in a spontaneous categorization task.

Field of Study and Gender Moderation of the Association of Personality and Math Anxiety with Numeracy.

Math anxiety and personality influence numeracy, although the nature of their contribution has been overlooked. In the present study, we investigated whether their association with numeracy depended on field of study and gender in higher education. Participants were Italian undergraduates in either the humanities ( = 201) or Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM;  = 209) fields of study.

Math computerized games in the classroom: A number line training in primary school children.

Several studies have shown that the number line can be a useful tool to support early numeracy development. Here, we conducted a school-based training study to evaluate the effectiveness of the software "The Number Line" ("La Linea Dei Numeri"; Tressoldi and Peroni, 2013) in improving children's mathematical skills. We randomly allocated 10 classes of first, second and third graders (N=183) to one of three experimental groups: one group played with The Number Line; the second group played with Labyrinth, a computerized game designed to train attention skills; the third group had no intervention (business-as-usual).

Low discriminative power of WISC cognitive profile in developmental dyscalculia.

Background: The role of domain-general cognitive abilities in the etiology of Developmental Dyscalculia (DD) is a hotly debated issue.

Aims: In the present study, we tested whether WISC-IV cognitive profiles can be useful to single out DD.

Methods And Procedures: Using a stringent 2-SD cutoff in a standardized numeracy battery, we identified children with DD (N = 43) within a clinical sample referred for assessment of learning disability and compared them in terms of WISC cognitive indexes to the remaining children without DD (N = 100) employing cross-validated logistic regression.

Number estimation in Down syndrome: Cognition or experience?

Background: The ability to place numbers on a visual "number line" is a hallmark of the understanding of numerical magnitude and it is a strong predictor of mathematical achievement.

Aim: We examined whether the performance in the number line estimation task is more driven by mental age or experience with numbers in a sample of Italian children with Down syndrome (DS).

Method And Procedure: Sixty-three children with DS (M = 128.

Numeracy Gender Gap in STEM Higher Education: The Role of Neuroticism and Math Anxiety.

The under-representation of women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) is ubiquitous and understanding the roots of this phenomenon is mandatory to guarantee social equality and economic growth. In the present study, we investigated the contribution of non-cognitive factors that usually show higher levels in females, such as math anxiety (MA) and neuroticism personality trait, to numeracy competence, a core component in STEM studies. A sample of STEM undergraduate students, balanced for gender (  =   = 70) and Intelligent Quotient (IQ), completed online self-report questionnaires and a numeracy cognitive assessment test.

Parent-based training of basic number skills in children with Down syndrome using an adaptive computer game.

Background: Numeracy is an area of difficulty for children with Down syndrome (DS). It has been demonstrated that The Number Race, a non-commercial adaptive computer game designed to foster basic mathematical abilities, represents a promising instrument to enhance these skills in children with DS when delivered by an expert in a clinical setting.

Aims: In the present study, we assessed the efficacy of The Number Race when administered at home by properly instructed and remotely supervised parents.

Training basic numerical skills in children with Down syndrome using the computerized game "The Number Race".

Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) present reduced basic numerical skills, which have a negative impact on everyday numeracy and mathematical learning. Here, we evaluated the efficacy of the adaptive (non-commercial) computerized game "The Number Race" in improving basic numerical skills in children with DS. The experimental group (EG; N = 30, M 118, range 70-149) completed a training playing with "The Number Race", whereas children in the control group (CG; N = 31, M 138, range 76-207) worked with software aiming at improving their reading skills.