@phdthesis{Sixtus2018,
  author    = {Sixtus, Elena},
  title     = {Subtle fingers - tangible numbers: The influence of finger counting experience on mental number representations},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-420115},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {vi, 138},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {Numbers are omnipresent in daily life. They vary in display format and in their meaning so that it does not seem self-evident that our brains process them more or less easily and flexibly. The present thesis addresses mental number representations in general, and specifically the impact of finger counting on mental number representations. Finger postures that result from finger counting experience are one of many ways to convey numerical information. They are, however, probably the one where the numerical content becomes most tangible. By investigating the role of fingers in adults' mental number representations the four presented studies also tested the Embodied Cognition hypothesis which predicts that bodily experience (e.g., finger counting) during concept acquisition (e.g., number concepts) stays an immanent part of these concepts. The studies focussed on different aspects of finger counting experience. First, consistency and further details of spontaneously used finger configurations were investigated when participants repeatedly produced finger postures according to specific numbers (Study 1). Furthermore, finger counting postures (Study 2), different finger configurations (Study 2 and 4), finger movements (Study 3), and tactile finger perception (Study 4) were investigated regarding their capability to affect number processing. Results indicated that active production of finger counting postures and single finger movements as well as passive perception of tactile stimulation of specific fingers co-activated associated number knowledge and facilitated responses towards corresponding magnitudes and number symbols. Overall, finger counting experience was reflected in specific effects in mental number processing of adult participants. This indicates that finger counting experience is an immanent part of mental number representations. Findings are discussed in the light of a novel model. The MASC (Model of Analogue and Symbolic Codes) combines and extends two established models of number and magnitude processing. Especially a symbolic motor code is introduced as an essential part of the model. It comprises canonical finger postures (i.e., postures that are habitually used to represent numbers) and finger-number associations. The present findings indicate that finger counting functions both as a sensorimotor magnitude and as a symbolic representational format and that it thereby directly mediates between physical and symbolic size. The implications are relevant both for basic research regarding mental number representations and for pedagogic practices regarding the effectiveness of finger counting as a means to acquire a fundamental grasp of numbers.},
  language  = {en}
}
@misc{FischerSixtusGoebel2015,
  author    = {Fischer, Martin H. and Sixtus, Elena and G{\"o}bel, Silke M.},
  title     = {Commentary},
  series = {Postprints der Universit{\"a}t Potsdam : Humanwissenschaftliche Reihe},
  journal   = {Postprints der Universit{\"a}t Potsdam : Humanwissenschaftliche Reihe},
  number    = {420},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-406260},
  pages     = {3},
  year      = {2015},
  abstract  = {kein Abstract vorhanden},
  language  = {en}
}
@unpublished{FischerSixtusGoebel2015,
  author    = {Fischer, Martin H. and Sixtus, Elena and G{\"o}bel, Silke M.},
  title     = {Commentary: A pointer about grasping numbers},
  series = {Frontiers in psychology},
  volume    = {6},
  journal   = {Frontiers in psychology},
  publisher = {Frontiers Research Foundation},
  address   = {Lausanne},
  doi       = {10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00227},
  pages     = {3},
  year      = {2015},
  language  = {en}
}