Université de Fribourg

Development of stereo vision in young infants

Röthlisberger, Martina ; Frick, Andrea

In: Infancy, 2020, p. 1-16

In this study, infants’ visual processing of depth-inducing stimuli was tested using a new method suitable for experimental settings. Stereograms of the Lang-Stereopad® were presented in a timed preferential-looking paradigm to determine infants’ preference for a stereogram as compared to a stimulus not inducing an impression of depth. A total of 80 infants were tested at 7 months of...

Université de Fribourg

Understanding of object rotation between two and three years of age

Pedrett, Salome ; Kaspar, Lea ; Frick, Andrea

In: Developmental Psychology, 2020, vol. 56, p. 261-274

Toddlers’ understanding of object rotation was investigated using a multi-method approach. Participants were 44 toddlers between 22 and 38 months of age. In an eye-tracking task, they observed a shape that rotated and disappeared briefly behind an occluder. In an object-fitting task, they rotated wooden blocks and fit them through apertures. Results of the eye-tracking task showed that with...

Université de Fribourg

Spatial-numerical associations in 1st-graders: Evidence from a manual-pointing task

Möhring, Wenke ; Ishihara, Masami ; Curiger, Jacqueline ; Frick, Andrea

In: Psychological Research, 2019, vol. 83, p. 855-893

The current study investigated whether children’s mental representations of numbers are organized spatially at the onset of formal schooling using a manual-pointing task. First- graders (N = 77) saw four numbers (1, 3, 7, 9) presented randomly in four spatial positions (extreme left, left, right, extreme right) on a touch screen. In a Go/No-Go task, children were asked to press the appearing...

Université de Fribourg

Spatial transformation abilities and their relation to later mathematics performance

Frick, Andrea

In: Psychological Research, 2019, vol. 83, no. 7, p. 1465-1484

Using a longitudinal approach, this study investigated the relational structure of different spatial transformation skills at kindergarten age, and how these spatial skills relate to children’s later mathematics performance. Children were tested at three time points, in kindergarten, first grade, and second grade (N = 119). Exploratory factor analyses revealed two subcomponents of spatial...

Université de Fribourg

Spatial scaling, proportional thinking, and numerical understanding in 5- to 7-year-old children

Möhring, Wenke ; Frick, Andrea ; Newcombe, Nora S.

In: Cognitive Development, 2018, vol. 45, p. 57-67

The present study investigated the role of spatial scaling and proportional-reasoning skills in children’s number-line estimations. Proportional strategies in number-line estimations might suggest that correlations between number-line knowledge and scaling are driven by proportional thinking. However, analyses of data on spatial scaling, proportional reasoning, counting skills, and...

Université de Fribourg

The relation between spatial thinking and proportional reasoning in preschoolers

Möhring, Wenke ; Newcombe, Nora S. ; Frick, Andrea

In: Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2015, vol. 132, p. 213–220

Previous research has indicated a close link between spatial and mathematical thinking. However, what shared processes account for this link? In this study, we focused on the spatial skill of map reading and the mathematical skill of proportional reasoning and investigated whether scaling, or the ability to relate information in different-sized representations, is a shared process. Scaling was...

Université de Fribourg

Touching up mental rotation : Effects of manual experience on 6-month-old infants’ mental object rotation

Möhring, Wenke ; Frick, Andrea

In: Child Development, 2013, vol. 84, no. 5, p. 1554-1565

In this study, 6-month-olds’ ability to mentally rotate objects was investigated using the violation-of-expectation paradigm. Forty infants watched an asymmetric object being moved straight down behind an occluder. When the occluder was lowered, it revealed the original object (possible) or its mirror image (impossible) in one of five orientations. Whereas half of the infants were allowed...

Université de Fribourg

Mental object rotation and motor development in 8- and 10-month-old infants

Frick, Andrea ; Möhring, Wenke

In: Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2013, vol. 115, no. 4, p. 708-720

Recent evidence indicates that 6-month-old infants’ mental rotation of objects profits from prior manual experience, whereas observational experience does not have the same beneficial effect (Möhring, W. & Frick, A., 2013, Child Development). The present study investigated whether older infants, at 8 and 10 months of age, succeed in this task after observational experience only, and...

Université de Fribourg

Using a touch screen paradigm to assess the development of mental rotation between 3½ and 5½ years of age

Frick, Andrea ; Ferrara, Katrina ; Newcombe, Nora S.

In: Cognitive Processing, 2013, vol. 14, no. 2, p. 117-127

Mental rotation is an important spatial skill. However, there is controversy concerning its early development and susceptibility to intervention. In the present study, we assessed individual differences in the mental rotation abilities of children between 3½ and 5½ years of age, using a touch screen paradigm to simplify task demands. A figure or its mirror image was presented in 8 different...