Left Digit Effect in Atypical Number Line Estimation

Live Poster Session: Zoom Link

Leah Vaidya
Leah Vaidya

Leah Vaidya is the full-time Yellow Lab Coordinator. She graduated from Tulane University in 2020. She is interested in how children develop math skills. As an undergraduate, she studied the effects of selective attention on the relationship between socioeconomic status and science knowledge in preschool-age children. In the future, she plans to attend graduate school in developmental psychology.

Sierra Eisen
Sierra Eisen

Sierra Eisen is a postdoctoral fellow in the Yellow Lab. She received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of Virginia. She is broadly interested in how children learn STEM skills through physical and digital play and how adults can support children’s educational experiences. Her dissertation examined parent-child interactions during physical and digital spatial play and the impact of a spatial play intervention.

Lauren Barragan
Lauren Barragan

Lauren Barragan is a senior Psychology major at Wesleyan. She is interested in child development and how we form our belief systems, cultivate relationships with those around us and get to know our inner selves. In her free time, she enjoys water coloring, cooking sustainable meals, and upcycling clothing.

Selena Delgado
Selena Delgado

Selena Delgado is a junior double majoring in Psychology and Education Studies at Wesleyan. She is the head of Wesleyan Club Volleyball and is both a TESOL and writing tutor. In her free time, Selena enjoys listening to music, playing sports and watching Netflix.

Sarah Hammond
Sarah Hammond

Sarah Hammond is a junior at Wesleyan double majoring in Psychology and Hispanic Literatures and Cultures and minoring in Education Studies. Outside of classes, Sarah is a member of the Women’s Soccer team and is involved in clubs such as WesReads/WesMath and Wesleyan Food Rescue.

Courtney Litts
Courtney Litts

Courtney Litts is a junior Neuroscience and Behavior and Psychology double major on the pre-med track. She is a member of the Women’s Soccer Team at Wesleyan and is the lead choreographer of the tap-dancing group on campus, WeShuffle. Additionally, Courtney is a member of Wesleyan’s Hope Happens Here chapter which promotes mental health awareness and mental well-being on college campuses, particularly with student-athletes.

Carolina Montano
Carolina Montano

Carolina is a senior majoring in psychology and minoring in international relations. Originally from Miami, FL, she is proud to call Wesleyan her home for the last 4 years. She hopes to continue research after college, as well as working with children. Outside of the lab, you can find her delegating as the senior class secretary or finding the next vinyl record to add to her collection.

Emily Newman
Emily Newman

Emily Newman is a senior double majoring in Psychology and Education Studies at Wesleyan. Aside from lab she enjoys working with children as a tutor.

Sarah Aduke Ohiomah
Sarah Aduke Ohiomah

Sarah Aduke Ohiomah is a senior Psychology major at Wesleyan University. Currently, she is interested in the construction of thought processes in early childhood and how these cognitive abilities during youth lead to more advanced social and problem-solving skills during adulthood. In the future, she hopes to become a psychotherapist for young children and adolescents struggling with mental disorders. Outside of school, Sarah enjoys practicing yoga, running, and meditating.

Abby Wolk
Abby Wolk

Abby Wolk is a junior at Wesleyan double majoring in Psychology and Science in Society and minoring in Data Analysis. Outside of lab, she is a member of the Women’s Lacrosse team and the founder/leader of Students Demand Action.

Andrea Patalano
Andrea Patalano

Andrea L. Patalano is the RDM Lab director. She is a cognitive scientist and faculty member in the Department of Psychology and the Program in Neuroscience and Behavior. Her interests in high-level cognition include decision making, judgment, and reasoning.

Hilary Barth
Hilary Barth

Hilary Barth, Ph.D. is a psychological scientist working within the broad area of human cognition and development. Main areas of interest are mathematical cognition; thinking and learning about number, space, time, and probability; social cognition; and decision making. She is director of the Yellow Lab, one of the Cognitive Development Labs at Wesleyan.

Abstract: Number line estimation performance is influenced by leftmost digits of target numerals, such that numbers like 899 and 901 are systematically placed too far apart despite their similar magnitudes. This left digit effect has been explored in typical ranges (like 0-1000), but not in atypical ranges (like 238-1238). The current study investigates left digit effects in number line estimation for both types of ranges. Children and adults demonstrated strong left digit effects for both number line ranges. Adults showed a significantly greater left digit effect for the atypical number line range.  

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