Giles, OT orcid.org/0000-0002-4056-1916, Shire, KA, Hill, LJB orcid.org/0000-0002-4069-5121 et al. (7 more authors) (2018) Hitting the target: Mathematical attainment in children is related to interceptive timing ability. Psychological Science, 29 (8). pp. 1334-1345. ISSN 0956-7976
Abstract
Interceptive timing (IntT) is a fundamental ability underpinning numerous actions (e.g. ball catching), but its development and relationship with other cognitive functions remains poorly understood. Piaget (1955) suggested that children need to learn the physical rules that govern their environment before they can represent abstract concepts such as number and time. Thus, learning how objects move in space and time may underpin the development of related abstract representations (i.e. mathematics). To test this hypothesis, we captured objective measures of IntT in 309 primary school children (4-11 years), alongside ‘general motor skill’ and ‘national standardized academic attainment’ scores. Bayesian estimation showed that IntT (but not general motor capability) uniquely predicted mathematical ability even after controlling for age, reading and writing attainment. This finding highlights that interceptive timing is distinct from other motor skills with specificity in predicting childhood mathematical ability independent of other forms of attainment and motor capability.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2018. This is an author produced version of a paper accepted for publication in Psychological Science. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | interceptive timing; mathematics; reading; writing; education; fine motor; gross motor; posture; educational neuroscience; open data |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Mechanical Engineering (Leeds) > Institute of Engineering Systems and Design (iESD) (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Psychology (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number NIHR National Inst Health Research YH - CLAHRC Department of Health PR-R10-0514-11004 MRC Not Known |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 09 Feb 2018 10:19 |
Last Modified: | 14 Aug 2018 11:59 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE / APS |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/0956797618772502 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:127194 |