In this line of research, we aim to understand how children and adults perform basic calculations such as simple sums (e.g., 2 + 4 = 6). On the one hand, we evaluate whether people carry out these operations by rote (the solution pops out at them) or whether they use strategies to solve them (e.g., rounding). We also examined whether the performance of these operations depends on the way they are presented (visually, orally, etc.). On the other hand, we examined control processes that seem to regulate the resolution of simple operations. For example, 2 + 3 = 6 is an incorrect sum, but it is difficult to notice since the proposed result is correct for the multiplication counterpart (2 x 3 = 6). In children and adults, inhibitory control seems to regulate these situations.
Some Readings
• Tejero, G., & Macizo, P. (2020). Simple additions: Dissociation between retrieval and counting with electrophysiological indexes. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 149, 48-59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2020.01.001
• Megías, P., & Macizo, P. (2016). Simple arithmetic: Electrophysiological evidence of coactivation and selection of arithmetic facts. Experimental Brain Research, 234, 3305-3319. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-016-4728-z
