Capturing the Interconnected Development of Whole Number Arithmetic Operations Using a Network Approach.
We used network analysis to examine the structure and development of arithmetic fluency in Chinese students from Grades 3 to 6—a critical period during which fluency across the four operations becomes increasingly integrated. In two preregistered studies, students completed timed fluency tasks in ad...
| Publicado en: | Developmental Psychology Vol. 62; no. 9; pp. 1740 - 1754 |
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| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , |
| Formato: | Artículo |
| Publicado: |
American Psychological Association
Sep2026
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ssf&AN=195791697&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ssf uiTerm: 195791697 longDbName: Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson) uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: jinfo: jid: 00121649 DPS jtl: Developmental Psychology issn: 00121649 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Sep2026 vid: 62 iid: 9 pid: 34 pub: American Psychological Association artinfo: ui: 195791697 10.1037/dev0002112 ppf: 1740 ppct: 14 formats: tig: atl: Capturing the Interconnected Development of Whole Number Arithmetic Operations Using a Network Approach. aug: au: Xu, Chang Di Lonardo Burr, Sabrina Yu, Shuyuan LeFevre, Jo-Anne Li, Hongxia Si, Jiwei Wang, Yudan Wu, Siyao affil: School of Psychology, Queen's University Belfast School of Psychology, University of Sheffield School of Education, University of California, Irvine Department of Cognitive Science, Carleton University Department of Psychology, Carleton University Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Mental Health, Faculty of Psychology, Shandong Normal University su: China Cross-sectional method Intellect Task performance Elementary schools Child development School children Social support Intelligence tests Mathematics Data analysis T-test (Statistics) Research funding Descriptive statistics Chi-squared test Longitudinal method Statistics sug: subj: Cross-sectional method Intellect Task performance Elementary schools Child development School children Social support Intelligence tests China Elementary and Secondary Schools Other Individual and Family Services Mathematics Data analysis T-test (Statistics) Research funding Descriptive statistics Chi-squared test Longitudinal method Statistics keyword: additive arithmetic fluency integration mathematics development network analysis additive arithmetic fluency integration mathematics development network analysis ab: We used network analysis to examine the structure and development of arithmetic fluency in Chinese students from Grades 3 to 6—a critical period during which fluency across the four operations becomes increasingly integrated. In two preregistered studies, students completed timed fluency tasks in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. In Study 1, we compared network structures in Grade 3 (N = 1,072; M = 9.1 years) and Grade 6 (N = 1,160; M = 12.1 years). We found that students in Grade 6 demonstrated more strongly interconnected and uniformly structured networks than those in Grade 3. In Study 2, students (N = 1,055; M = 9.8 years) were assessed in a longitudinal design at four time points in Grades 4 and 5. Addition and subtraction consistently emerged as central operations, forming the foundational core of the arithmetic network. Division reflected significant integration of knowledge from other operations, whereas multiplication generally showed weak connections with the other operations. Overall, development was highly interdependent, with improvements in one operation closely linked to gains in others. This research provides empirical evidence that arithmetic knowledge evolves from a differentiated structure into a unified and interconnected system, highlighting the value of viewing arithmetic development as a dynamic network of associations that consolidate over time. Public Significance Statement: We found that, during primary school, students' development in arithmetic is highly interdependent, with progress in one operation closely linked to gains in others. Addition and subtraction emerged as core building blocks of arithmetic fluency, while division showed strong integration with other operations, and multiplication showed weaker connections. These findings provide developmental evidence that arithmetic skills form increasingly cohesive and interrelated networks over time. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Article src: R language: English refInfo: copyright: @attributes: flag: N holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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