Research directions
Automated counting procedures
Behavioral studies
Through the the collect of solution times, we infer the stratégies used by children in adults when they solve simple addition problems. The results of these studies allowed us to question the dominant model of the litterature according to which the answer to simple problems are retrieved from long-term memory. We rather suggest that simple problems such as 3 + 2 are solved by unscounscious counting procedures by expert arithmeticians. In order to test our hypothesis, we also conduct a large series of study to investigate the effect of intensive training on addition solution times. To do so, we use an alphabet numerical task (C + 3 = ?) wherein adults are in conditions that are close to their first acquisition of more natural calculations (2 + 3 = ?). This line of research could help us to put forward a new model concerning the explication of dyscalculia.
Brain imaging studies
Neural correlates of the unconscious counting procedures that we hypothesize are studied through brain imaging methodologies (fMRI).
Finger counting
It is sometimes suggested in the literature that finger counting is an important if not necessary step towards the acquisition of more complex numerical skills. We examine this hypothesis through a longitudinal follow up of children from the age of 5 and over three consecutive years. Their finger counting habits are observed and related to their performance in arithmetic tasks. The hypothesis is also examined through the study of children with hemiplegia who experience difficulties with fine motor gestures. Finally, the relationship between finger counting and montring habits and mental representations of numbers will be investigated in an intercultural perspective. We will study British and Swiss adults who represent numbers on fingers differently.
Word problem arithmetic problem solving
Electrophysiological studies
The nature of the representations constructed by individuals to solve arithmetic word problem still needs to be studied. Based on our previous works, we hypothesize that mental models are constructed by expert solvers during problem solving. This theory stands in opposition with the schema theory, assuming that problems are solved through the activation of abstract schemas from long-term memory. In order to further test our hypothesis, we record the electro-physiological brain activity of adults using EEG and we predict that, depending on the context of the problem, different level of mental imagery should be observed.
