EARLY NUMBERS DEVELOPMENT: A DOMAIN GENERAL APPROACH

近年来，数概念的发展被概念化为一个由先天机制和/或原则指导的领域特定过程。 这种概念化意味着数字概念的发展不同于其他概念，可能是发展特权。 然而，新的研究表明，数的至少一个方面的发展--数的等价类的形成--与其他概念一样，受到相似性和命名的影响（Mix，出版中;正在审查）。 这里提出的三个项目旨在进一步研究领域一般过程在多大程度上适用于和解释数概念的发展。 具体而言，本研究将（1）使用简单的三元组匹配任务来检验学前儿童的等值判断是否受到集合中与数字无关的表面特征的变化的影响;（2）采用纵向设计跟踪各种数字技能和概念的发展，以确定在关于数字，比较，（3）运用微观遗传训练实验来检验在其他领域促进概念发展的经验是否对数字范畴的形成有类似的影响。 如果数概念像其他概念一样发展，它将提供重要的洞察力的机制，数字概念形成的基础，并提出新的途径，在特定领域的框架中被忽视的研究。 这也将增加我们对发展过程的普遍性的了解，这些发展过程被假定用来解释其他领域的比较和分类。

In recent years, the development of number concepts has been conceptualized as a domain specific process that is guided by innate mechanisms and/or principles. This conceptualization implies that number concepts develop differently from other concepts and may be developmentally privileged. However, new research indicates that development of at least one aspect of number- the formation of numerical equivalence classes- is affected by similarity and naming in much the same way as other concepts (Mix, in press; under review). The three projects proposed here seek to investigate further the extent to which domain general processes apply to and explain the development of number concepts. Specifically, this research will (1) use a simple triad matching task to test whether preschoolers' equivalence judgments are affected by variations in numerically irrelevant surface features of the sets; (2) use a longitudinal design to track the development of various numerical skills and concepts in order to establish whether developmental trends suggested in cross-sectional research on number, comparison, and categorization are evident in individual development; and (3) use microgenetic training experiments to test whether experiences found to promote conceptual growth in other domains have similar effects on the formation of number categories. If number concepts develop like other concepts, it would provide important insight into the mechanisms that underlie number concept formation and suggest new avenues for research that have been overlooked in the domain specific framework. It would also increase what is known about the generalizability of the developmental processes that have been posited to explain comparison and categorization in other domains.