Math in actions: Actor mode reveals the true arithmetic abilities of French-speaking 2-year-olds in a magic task

作者：Lubin, Amelie; Poirel, Nicolas; Rossi, Sandrine; Pineau, Arlette; Houde, Olivier^*

来源：Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2009, 103(3): 376-385.

DOI：10.1016/j.jecp.2009.02.002

• Arithmetical development and assessment
• Action
• Language bias
• Magic task
• Singular/plural distinction
• Numerical cognition

Our previous studies provide some evidence of between-language effects on arithmetic performance in 2-year-olds. French-speaking children were especially biased by the use of the word un as a cardinal value and as an article in the singular/plural opposition (1 vs. the set 2, 3, ...). Here we evaluated the ability of a new action-based assessment method to avoid this bias. A total of 80 French-speaking 2- and 3-year-olds were confronted with impossible (1 1 = 1 or 1 1 = 3) and possible (1 1 = 2) addition problems that triggered the bias. The problems were either presented to the children by the experimenter (onlooker mode) or realized by themselves (actor mode). The 2-year-olds performed better in the actor mode than in the onlooker mode. A subtraction control with no language ambiguity (2-1 = 2 or 1) was conducted with 80 other children; both modes elicited comparable performances regardless of age. These data indicate that the actor mode is effective for assessing arithmetic ability in French-speaking 2-year-olds.

• 出版日期2009-7
• 单位中国地震局