Infant brains detect arithmetic errors.

ABSTRACT: A current debate is whether increased looking time in infancy is related to violation of expectations. In this study, 6- to 9-month-old infants' brain activity was analyzed during presentation of correct and incorrect solutions to simple arithmetic equations [(e.g., presentation of 1 + 1; one doll on a TV monitor, with another doll added from behind a screen, followed by a solution of 2 (correct) or 1 (incorrect)]. Infants looked longer at incorrect solutions than at correct ones. Event-related potentials, time-locked to the presentation of the solution, also differed between conditions, with greater negative activity for the incorrect solution condition. Spectral analysis showed a similar pattern to that of adults observing correct and incorrect arithmetical equations. These findings show

SUBMITTER: Berger A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1567933 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature