Numeracy skills mediate the relation between executive function and mathematics achievement in early childhood

Yun-Chen CHAN, Nicole R. SCALISE

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlespeer-review

16 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We examine a potential mechanism underlying the relation between executive function (EF) skills and mathematics achievement in early childhood. Across two samples of three- to six-year-olds in preschool and kindergarten, we found that children's EF skills predict their concurrent skills in set counting, numeral identification, number comparison, and number line estimation. The effects of EF on later numeral identification, number comparison, and number line estimation skills remained significant for these two samples of children, but these effects attenuated when controlling for the respective earlier numeracy skill. Further, aspects of numeracy skills mediated the association between EF and mathematics achievement in both samples. Together, these findings provide evidence on the nuanced relations between EF, numeracy, and mathematics achievement, and suggest attention to each numeracy skill in order to support early mathematical development. Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Original languageEnglish
Article number101154
JournalCognitive Development
Volume62
Early online dateJan 2022
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Apr 2022

Citation

Chan, J. Y.-C., & Scalise, N. R. (2022). Numeracy skills mediate the relation between executive function and mathematics achievement in early childhood. Cognitive Development, 62. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogdev.2022.101154

Keywords

  • Executive function
  • Numeracy skills
  • Preschool
  • Kindergarten
  • Mathematics achievement
  • Early childhood

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