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PubMed · 17063923

Encoding numbers: behavioral evidence for processing-specific representations.

Catherine Thevenot·Pierre Barrouillet
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Abstract

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis of a complex encoding of numbers according to which each numerical processing requires a specific representational format for input In three experiments, adult participants were given two numbers presented successively on screen through a self-presentation procedure after being asked to add, to subtract, or to compare them. We considered the self-presentation time of the first number as reflecting the complexity of the encoding for a given planned processing. In line with Dehaene's triple-code model, self-presentation times were longer for additions and subtractions than for comparisons with two-digit numbers but longer for subtractions than for additions and comparisons with one-digit numbers. The implications of these results for different theories of number processing are discussed.

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Catherine Thevenot, Pierre Barrouillet. 2006. Encoding numbers: behavioral evidence for processing-specific representations.. https://doi.org/10.3758/bf03193439

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