ERIC Number: EJ738955
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2006-Jul
Pages: 8
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0278-2626
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Second to Fourth Digit Ratio and Numerical Competence in Children
Fink, Bernhard; Brookes, Helen; Neave, Nick; Manning, John T.; Geary, David C.
Brain and Cognition, v61 n2 p211-218 Jul 2006
The ratio between the 2nd and 4th fingers (2D:4D)--a potential proxy for prenatal testosterone (T) exposure--shows a sex difference, with males usually having lower mean values; the latter potentially indicates higher prenatal T exposure. We studied relations between 2D:4D and competencies in the domains of counting, number knowledge, and visual-number representation in 73 children aged 6-11 years. Significant negative correlations between numerical performance in all of these areas and right and left hand 2D:4D ratios were found for boys but not girls. To the extent that 2D:4D ratios reflects prenatal exposure to T, the implications are (i) high prenatal T may be associated with better performance on some basic numerical measures for boys, and (ii) prenatal exposure to T may affect boys and girls differently with respect to some numerical competencies.
Descriptors: Prenatal Influences, Mathematics Skills, Gender Differences, Computation, Correlation, Children, Handedness, Foreign Countries, Numeracy, Comprehension
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A