Understanding the Mental Number Line: spatial-numerical associations across reference frames Open Access

Abstract

For two decades, psychologists have investigated the idea of a Mental Number Line (MNL) wherein numbers are systematically mapped onto--and represented in--a particular side of space (e.g., Dehaene, Bossini, & Giraux). Nevertheless, the mechanisms of this putative MNL number line remain unclear: what does it mean to say that small numbers are mapped onto the left side of space--to the left of what? The present study examines spatial-numerical associations (SNAs) and the notion of a MNL in two egocentric (eyes, body) and two allocentric (keyboard, screen) frames of reference. In a first experiment, we test all four reference frames in unison and find evidence of a SNA only in the allocentric, keyboard-centered frame of reference. In two follow-up experiments, we isolated the screen-centered and eye-centered reference frames, finding evidence of a SNA only in the former. We discuss how these results relate to the idea of a possible "hierarchy of reference frames" (e.g., Viarouge, Hubbard, & Dehaene, 2014) and consider the implications of these findings in regards to the existence of a MNL. Furthermore, we discuss the implications of this work for spatial representation (i.e., frames of reference) more broadly.

Table of Contents

1.0 - Introduction 1

1.1 - Understanding spatial reference frames 5

1.2 - The current study 6

2.0 - Experiment 1 8

2.1 - Methods

2.1.1 - Participants

2.1.2 - Stimuli and Procedure

2.2 - Results 9

2.2.1 - Keyboard-centered reference frame

2.2.2 - Screen-centered reference frame 10

2.2.3 - Eye-centered reference frame

2.2.4 - Body-centered reference frame 11

2.3 - Discussion

3.0 - Experiment 2 12

3.1 - Methods

3.1.1 - Participants

3.1.2 - Stimuli and Procedure 13

3.2 - Results 14

3.3 - Discussion 15

4.0 - Experiment 3 16

4.1 - Methods

4.1.1 - Participants

4.1.2 - Stimuli and Procedure

4.2 - Results 17

4.3 - Discussion

5.0 - General Discussion 19

6.0 - References 24

7.0 - Appendix 29

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Psychology
Degree	BA
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Psychology, General Psychology, Experimental Psychology, Cognitive
Keyword	Spatial-numerical associations Spatial cognition Mental Number Line Numerical cognition
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Lourenco, Stella, Emory University
Committee Members	Freeman, Carla, Emory University Dilks, Daniel D, Emory University

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