Developmental involvement of prefrontal cortex and working memory in mathematical problem solving.

前额皮质和工作记忆在数学问题解决中的发展参与。

• 批准号: RGPGP-2014-00058
• 负责人: Arsalidou, Marie
• 金额: $ 1.89万
• 依托单位: York University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Group
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2015-01-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=587278
• 关键词: Developmental; involvement; prefrontal; cortex; working

Recent reports show student’s math scores in decline across Canada; and among 24 countries Canadians score significantly below average on numeracy tests. Understanding of psychological and biological aspects related to math development is instrumental to create improved methods for teaching. Children’s success in math is due in part to brain maturation. Much of their math training coincides with a period of significant development in prefrontal cortex –brain areas associated with cognition and working memory (WM). WM capacity is indexed by the number of distinct items, a person can coordinate in mind. WM and mathematical performance improve with age. Our quantitative assessment can appraise in a true graded quantitative fashion, this gain in WM capacity. Early studies of mathematical cognition using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) primarily focus on activity elicited in parietal cortices; however, recent fMRI work highlights mental arithmetic as a multi-region affair. The proposed work will clarify prefrontal cortex’s specific contribution to this core activity and its direct relation to WM. Current proposal. There are three objectives: (a) Using a series of meta-analyses of fMRI data, establish current state of knowledge in neuroimaging findings with reference to mathematical problem solving. (b) Based on organismic process/task analysis, quantify numeric WM capacity across development, using a novel paradigm, the Number Matching Tasks (NMT). The NMT will be validated against our Colour Matching Tasks (CMT), an established visuo-spatial WM measure. (c) Examine brain activity as a function of numeric increases in WM-demand by using these tasks within an fMRI study with adults. We hypothesize that the meta-analyses will show multi-step math problems to recruit medial prefrontal areas, whereas inferior frontal gyri control simple problems. We anticipate numerical WM capacity in school children to grow such that 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14 and 15-16 year-olds, have on average a WM capacity of 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 units, respectively. We expect brain activity to linearly increase as a function of WM demand in task related regions, such as middle prefrontal cortices, replicating our previous findings with CMT. We also expect important differences between NMT and CMT in posterior brain regions (i.e., parietal cortex). Method. Meta-analyses: The literature will be searched using keywords (e.g., “fMRI and mathematical cognition”). Resulting articles will be aggregated using successive inclusion criteria. Data will be analyzed using a coordinate-based meta-analytic technique called Activation Likelihood Estimate. Developmental Study: Children aged 7-16 years will receive the validated visual-spatial CMT (WM-capacity measure) as well as the new NMT WM measure. Data will be analyzed with ANOVA, correlational methods and developmental sequencing. fMRI study: Adults (ages 20-30 years) will receive CMT and NMT tasks in the MRI scanner. Brain images will be preprocessed and analyzed using standard fMRI analytical protocols and linear regression. Expected knowledge outcome. Results will advance knowledge of WM-demand, processing complexity, and their neuro-functional expression in mathematical reasoning. Meta-analyses will yield a stereotaxic brain atlas of prefrontal cortex activity during mental arithmetic. Behavioural and neuroimaging findings will provide critical evidence on brain expression of numeric WM activities, particularly in prefrontal cortex development. Results of this work could be used in designing training interventions to help induce readiness in children deficient in mathematics. Results will provide new relevant knowledge for mathematical education in normal and clinical populations.

最近的报告显示，加拿大学生的数学成绩在下降;在24个国家中，加拿大人的数学成绩明显低于平均水平。 了解与数学发展有关的心理和生物方面有助于创造改进的教学方法。孩子们在数学上的成功部分是由于大脑的成熟。他们的大部分数学训练都与前额叶皮层（与认知和工作记忆（WM）相关的大脑区域）的重要发展时期相吻合。工作记忆能力是以一个人能够在头脑中协调的不同项目的数量为指标的。WM和数学表现随着年龄的增长而提高。我们的定量评估可以在一个真正的分级定量的方式评价，这在WM能力的增益。 早期使用功能性磁共振成像（fMRI）对数学认知的研究主要集中在顶叶皮层引起的活动;然而，最近的fMRI工作强调心算是一个多区域的事情。 这项工作将阐明前额叶皮层对这一核心活动的具体贡献及其与工作记忆的直接关系。 目前的提议。 有三个目标：（a）使用一系列功能磁共振成像数据的元分析，建立与数学问题解决有关的神经成像发现的知识现状。(b)基于组织过程/任务分析，量化数字工作记忆能力的发展，使用一种新的范式，数字匹配任务（NMT）。NMT将根据我们的颜色匹配任务（CMT）进行验证，CMT是一种既定的视觉空间WM测量方法。 (c)通过在成年人的fMRI研究中使用这些任务来检查大脑活动作为WM需求的数字增加的函数。 我们假设，荟萃分析将显示多步数学问题招募内侧前额叶区，而额下回控制简单的问题。我们预计，在学龄儿童的数量WM容量增长，使7-8，9-10，11-12，13-14和15-16岁的孩子，平均WM容量分别为3，4，5，6和7个单位。我们预计大脑活动在任务相关区域（如中前额叶皮层）中作为WM需求的函数线性增加，复制了我们先前对CMT的研究结果。我们还预计NMT和CMT在后脑区域（即，顶叶皮层）。 法 荟萃分析：将使用关键词（例如，fMRI与数学认知（fMRI and mathematical cognition）将使用连续的纳入标准对所得文章进行汇总。 将使用称为激活可能性估计的基于坐标的荟萃分析技术分析数据。 发展研究：7-16岁的儿童将接受经验证的视觉空间CMT（WM能力测量）以及新的NMT WM测量。 资料将以变异数分析、相关性分析及发展排序法进行分析。 fMRI研究：成年人（年龄20-30岁）将在MRI扫描仪中接受CMT和NMT任务。 将使用标准fMRI分析方案和线性回归对脑图像进行预处理和分析。 预期的知识成果。 结果将推进知识的WM需求，处理的复杂性，和他们的神经功能表达在数学推理。荟萃分析将产生一个脑立体定位图谱的前额叶皮层活动在心算。 行为学和神经影像学的研究结果将提供重要的证据，大脑表达的数字WM活动，特别是在前额叶皮层的发展。 这项工作的结果可用于设计培训干预措施，以帮助诱导准备在数学缺陷的儿童。研究结果将为正常人群和临床人群的数学教育提供新的相关知识。