Finger gnosia is associated with arithmetic skills in some studies but not others, with age and cognitive profile moderating the relation¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (3 entries) · review r3 · q2
Currency · newest study 2023 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? In a non-randomized controlled trial, finger gnosia training based on fine motor activities produced concurrent improvement in both finger gnosia and arithmetic skills specific to the training group. → Maëlle Neveu 2023 q2 i? Longitudinal evidence is contrasting: one study found finger gnosia significantly predicted computation skills one year later, while another found only number knowledge and numerosity discrimination were significant predictors. → Maëlle Neveu 2023 (2) q2 i? Cross-sectional results are mixed: three studies found significant associations, one found no evidence after controlling for age, one found the association in older but not younger children, and older studies diverged. → Maëlle Neveu 2023 (3)

Evidence¶

Maëlle Neveu 2023¶

Maëlle Neveu, Marie Geurten, Nancy Durieux, Laurence Rousselle. (2023). Finger Use and Arithmetic Skills in Children and Adolescents: a Scoping Review. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09722-8

q2 · i? · review · r3

Non-randomized controlled trial in which TD participants followed finger gnosia training based on fine motor activities; the review reports "a concurrent improvement in both finger gnosia and arithmetic skills specific to the training group." No effect size printed.

"In their results, Gracia-Bafalluy and Noël (2008) showed a concurrent improvement in both finger gnosia and arithmetic skills specific to the training group."

Maëlle Neveu 2023 (2)¶

Maëlle Neveu, Marie Geurten, Nancy Durieux, Laurence Rousselle. (2023). Finger Use and Arithmetic Skills in Children and Adolescents: a Scoping Review. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09722-8

q2 · i? · review · r3

Two longitudinal studies of TD first-graders yielded contrasting results on the predictive value of finger gnosia for arithmetic one year later; the review describes Noël (2005) as "a medium effect size" without a numeric value, and Malone et al. (2020) as null for finger gnosia.

"The first showed that finger gnosia were a significant predictor of computation skills, with a medium effect size (Noël, 2005), while the second concluded that only number knowledge and numerosity discrimination were significant predictors of arithmetic development, but finger gnosia was not (Malone et al., 2020)."

Maëlle Neveu 2023 (3)¶

Maëlle Neveu, Marie Geurten, Nancy Durieux, Laurence Rousselle. (2023). Finger Use and Arithmetic Skills in Children and Adolescents: a Scoping Review. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09722-8

q2 · i? · review · r3

Among nine cross-sectional studies, three found significant small-to-medium associations, Long et al. (2016) found "no evidence concerning the relation between finger gnosia and arithmetic skills after the effect of age was controlled," and Newman (2016) found the association only in older children.

"Long et al. (2016) concluded that there was no evidence concerning the relation between finger gnosia and arithmetic skills after the effect of age was controlled."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Fine motor skills training improves children's arithmetic skills in some trials but not others — related
• Graphomotor skills show the strongest links of the FMS subdomains with academic-cognitive skills, significantly exceeding dexterity — related
• Training children to explicitly use finger strategies improves calculation performance in most studies, though results are not uniform — related
• Finger gnosis is not a meaningful correlate of early arithmetic in this sample — related