Temporal information affects the performance of numerosity discrimination: Behavioral evidence for a shared system for numerosity and temporal processing

Tokita, Midori; Ishiguchi, Akira

doi:10.3758/s13423-011-0072-2

Cited by 19 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 25 publications

(35 reference statements)

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“…Second, the maximum ISI was carefully determined so that the participants would not make judgments on the basis of verbal counting and/or temporal patterns. To make verbal counting impossible, the longest stimulus interval was set to be less than 250 ms, as previous studies had demonstrated that participants could not rely on verbal or subverbal counting within that duration (e.g., Piazza, Mechelli, Price, & Butterworth, 2006;Tokita & Ishiguchi, 2011). To make the sequence aperiodic, we randomly added temporal jitter (−24, −17, −8, 0, 8, 17, or 24 ms) to each ISI in all cases, so that the temporal rate would not constitute a rhythmic pattern.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, in time-related tasks such as duration discrimination and empty-interval estimation, performance using auditory presentation was significantly better than that using visual and tactile presentations (e.g., Grondin, 2010). Furthermore, since temporal information affects numerical discrimination (Tokita & Ishiguchi, 2011), the performance of numerical discrimination may differ among modalities.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Is approximate numerical judgment truly modality-independent? Visual, auditory, and cross-modal comparisons

Tokita

Ashitani

Ishiguchi

2013

Atten Percept Psychophys

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The numerosity of any set of discrete elements can be depicted by a genuinely abstract number representation, irrespective of whether they are presented in the visual or auditory modality. The accumulator model predicts that no cost should apply for comparing numerosities within and across modalities. However, in behavioral studies, some inconsistencies have been apparent in the performance of number comparisons among different modalities. In this study, we tested whether and how numerical comparisons of visual, auditory, and cross-modal presentations would differ under adequate control of stimulus presentation. We measured the Weber fractions and points of subjective equality of numerical discrimination in visual, auditory, and cross-modal conditions. The results demonstrated differences between the performances in visual and auditory conditions, such that numerical discrimination of an auditory sequence was more precise than that of a visual sequence. The performance of cross-modal trials lay between performance levels in the visual and auditory conditions. Moreover, the number of visual stimuli was overestimated as compared to that of auditory stimuli. Our findings imply that the process of approximate numerical representation is complex and involves multiple stages, including accumulation and decision processes.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Is approximate numerical judgment truly modality-independent? Visual, auditory, and cross-modal comparisons

Tokita

Ashitani

Ishiguchi

2013

Atten Percept Psychophys

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“…Finally, time and number sense (for review see Allman et al, 2011) might have developed together, as supported by similar developmental trajectories Cordes & Brannon, 2008;Roitman et al, 2007; but see Yates, 2012), by behavioural evidence of magnitude/processing interference between temporal and numerical dimensions (Javadi & Aichelburg, 2012;Tokita & Ishiguchi, 2011), and by the anatomical proximity of the brain regions involved in time and number processing. For example the parietal cortex is activated by both sub-second temporal information and by numeric information (Castelli et al, 2006;Hayashi et al, 2013a), and lesion studies in parietal cortex indicate its involvement in processing both dimensions (Cappelletti et al, 2011b; see also Bueti & Walsh, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impaired Numerical Ability Affects Supra-Second Time Estimation

Gilaie-Dotan

Rees

Butterworth

et al. 2014

Timing Time Percept

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It has been suggested that the human ability to process number and time both rely on common magnitude mechanisms, yet for time this commonality has mainly been investigated in the sub-second rather than longer time ranges. Here we examined whether number processing is associated with timing in time ranges greater than a second. Specifically, we tested long duration estimation abilities in adults with a developmental impairment in numerical processing (dyscalculia), reasoning that any such timing impairment co-occurring with dyscalculia may be consistent with joint mechanisms for time estimation and number processing. Dyscalculics and age-matched controls were tested on supra-second temporal estimation (12 s), a difficulty-matched non-temporal control task, as well as mathematical abilities. Consistent with our hypothesis, dyscalculics were significantly impaired in supra-second duration estimation but not in the control task. Furthermore, supra-second timing ability positively correlated with mathematical proficiency. All participants reported that they used counting to estimate time, although no specific instructions were given with respect to counting. These results suggest that numerical processing and supra-second temporal estimation share common mechanisms. However, since this conclusion is also based on subjective observations, further work needs to be done to determine whether mathematical impairment co-occurs with supra-second time estimation impairment when counting is not involved in and is objectively controlled for during supra-second timing. We hypothesize that counting, that does not develop normally in dyscalculics, might underlie and adversely affect dyscalculics' supra-second time estimation performance, rather than an impairment of a magnitude mechanism or the internal clock pacemaker.

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“…Importantly, the ISIs were carefully determined so that the participants would not make judgments on the basis of verbal counting and/or temporal patterns. To make verbal counting impossible, the longest stimulus interval was set to be less than 250 ms, since previous studies have proved that participants cannot rely on verbal or subverbal counting within that duration (e.g., Piazza, Mechelli, Price, & Butterworth, 2006;Tokita & Ishiguchi, 2011).…”

Section: Stimulimentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We measured the Weber fractions of discrimination tasks to assess differences in performance. Many studies have shown that both behavioral and neuronal tuning functions obey the Weber law (i.e., discriminability depends on the Weber ratio of the numerosity to be compared) over a broad range of numerosities (e.g., Burgess & Barlow, 1983;Nieder & Merten, 2007;Piazza, Izard, Pinel, Le Bihan, & Dehaene, 2004;Tokita & Ishiguchi, 2010, 2011. Moreover, some studies have claimed that the Weber fraction could be an indicator of the ability to perform approximate numerosity representation (Halberda, Mazzocco, & Feigenson, 2008).…”

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confidence: 99%

Behavioral evidence for format-dependent processes in approximate numerosity representation

Tokita

Ishiguchi

2012

Psychon Bull Rev

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A genuinely abstract number representation is thought to be capable of representing the numerosity of any set of discrete elements, whether they are sequentially or simultaneously presented. Recent neuroimaging studies, however, have demonstrated that different areas of intraparietal sulcus play a role in extracting numerosity across simultaneous or sequential presentation during a quantification process, suggesting the existence of a format-dependent numerical system. To test whether behavioral evidence exists for format-dependent numerical processing in adult humans, we measured the Weber fractions of numerosity discrimination for sequential stimuli, simultaneous stimuli, and cross-format stimuli with a carefully controlled experimental procedure. The results showed distinct differences between the performance in the simultaneous and sequential conditions, supporting the existence of format-dependent processes for numerosity representation. Moreover, the performance on cross-format trials differed among participants, with the exception that performance was always worse than in the simultaneous condition. Taken together, our findings suggest that numerical representation may involve a complex set of multiple stages.

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Temporal information affects the performance of numerosity discrimination: Behavioral evidence for a shared system for numerosity and temporal processing

Cited by 19 publications

References 25 publications

Is approximate numerical judgment truly modality-independent? Visual, auditory, and cross-modal comparisons

Is approximate numerical judgment truly modality-independent? Visual, auditory, and cross-modal comparisons

Impaired Numerical Ability Affects Supra-Second Time Estimation

Behavioral evidence for format-dependent processes in approximate numerosity representation

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