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The impact of inhibition capacities and age on number–space associations

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Abstract

Numerical and spatial representations are tightly linked, i.e., when doing a binary classification judgment on Arabic digits, participants are faster to respond with their left/right hand to small/large numbers, respectively (Spatial-Numerical Association of Response Codes, SNARC effect, Dehaene et al. in J Exp Psychol Gen 122:371–396, 1993). To understand the underlying mechanisms of the well-established SNARC effect, it seems essential to explore the considerable inter-individual variability characterizing it. The present study assesses the respective roles of inhibition, age, working memory (WM) and response speed. Whereas these non-numerical factors have been proposed as potentially important factors to explain individual differences in SNARC effects, none (except response speed) has so far been explored directly. Confirming our hypotheses, the results show that the SNARC effect was stronger in participants that had weaker inhibition abilities (as assessed by the Stroop task), were relatively older and had longer response times. Interestingly, whereas a significant part of the age influence was mediated by cognitive inhibition, age also directly impacted the SNARC effect. Similarly, cognitive inhibition abilities explained inter-individual variability in number–space associations over and above the factors age, WM capacity and response speed. Taken together our results provide new insights into the nature of number–space associations by describing how these are influenced by the non-numerical factors age and inhibition.

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Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Notes

  1. This factor can be numerical or non-numerical according to the SNARC paradigms that are being used (i.e. parity judgment, magnitude comparison vs. orientation, color judgment, phoneme detection, vowel/consonant judgment).

  2. We thank Prof. Joseph Tzelgov for his opinion on a related matter.

  3. Welch F ratios have been computed in the case of violation of the homogeneity of variance assumption.

  4. Throughout the analyses, the Greenhouse–Geisser correction is applied where appropriate.

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Acknowledgments

This project was supported by a Grant from the University of Luxembourg F3R-EMA-PUL-09NSP2. The first-named author was supported by a PHD-AFR grant from the Fond National de la Recherche, Luxembourg (PHD-09-160).

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  1. EMACS Unit, FLSHASE, University of Luxembourg, Campus Walferdange, B.P.2, 7201, Walferdange, Luxembourg

    Danielle Hoffmann, Delia Pigat & Christine Schiltz

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  1. Danielle Hoffmann
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Correspondence to Danielle Hoffmann.

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Hoffmann, D., Pigat, D. & Schiltz, C. The impact of inhibition capacities and age on number–space associations. Cogn Process 15, 329–342 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10339-014-0601-9

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