Working memory demand increases with the complexity of arithmetic and math problems, including operand size and number of solution steps¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · reviewr2·q2
Currency · newest study 2007 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q2 i? Larger operands increase response latencies and errors, and larger problems increasingly rely on nonretrieval strategies that demand working memory. → Mark H. Ashcraft and Jeremy A. Krause 2007
Evidence¶
Mark H. Ashcraft and Jeremy A. Krause 2007¶
Mark H. Ashcraft and Jeremy A. Krause. (2007). Working memory, math performance, and math anxiety. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 14(2), 243-248. https://doi.org/10.3758/bf03194059
q2 · i? · review · r2
Narrative review of the mathematical cognition literature, citing LeFevre et al. (2005) and Zbrodoff & Logan (2005), reports that "response latencies and errors increase as the size of the operands increases". The review attributes part of this to lower memory strength for less frequent larger problems.
"The benchmark effect in this area is the problem-size effect, the empirical result that response latencies and errors increase as the size of the operands increases"
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- Adults with DD rely on time-consuming back-up strategies like finger usage for single-digit arithmetic, with prolonged response latencies that appear number-specific — related
- Simple subtraction in adults relies heavily on strategy use, which disadvantages participants under limited working memory resources — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
- Adults with developmental dyslexia use arithmetic fact retrieval less frequently than matched controls during single-digit multiplication and subtraction — related
- Problem type modulated solution times, with large problems slowest and +1 problems fastest in both age groups — related
- Students are less confident in direction of effect judgments for multiplication and division than for addition and subtraction, but equally confident regardless of operand size — related
- Arithmetic problem difficulty may increase as the square of the number of steps rather than directly with step count — related
- Min-counting becomes increasingly maladaptive as addition problem sizes increase — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
working-memory-demand-increases-with-math-problem-complexity |
title |
Working memory demand increases with the complexity of arithmetic and math problems, including operand size and number of solution steps |
description |
Working memory demand increases with the complexity of arithmetic and math problems, including operand size and number of solution steps |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2007 |
source_checked |
2026-10-20 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-17 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — mark-h-ashcraft-and-jeremy-a-krause-2007 |
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