Individual Differences in Arithmetical Development

It is well known that individual differences in arithmetical performance are very marked in both children and adults. This is an important issue both from a practical and theoretical perspective. From a practical point of view, it may be difficult to help pupils to reach their potential in mathematics and to ameliorate or prevent numeracy difficulties without a greater understanding of the nature and causes of individual differences. From a theoretical point of view, it is important to reconcile the seeming universality of some core aspects of numerical cognition with the wide range of individual differences in arithmetic; and to understand the causes and correlates of such individual differences.

There has been an increasing interest in recent years in numerical cognition and its development; in the relationships and dissociations between different aspects of numerical cognition; and in the domain-general and domain-specific factors that predict mathematical attainment. There has also been increasing interest in applying such research to the development of interventions for children with mathematical difficulties. The time appears ripe for a Research Topic to bring together research on individual differences in arithmetical development from diverse perspectives.

We welcome articles on arithmetical development in both early and later childhood; on different components of arithmetic and the concurrent and predictive relationships between them; and on the relationships between arithmetical development and domain-general factors such as working memory and inhibition. Articles both on mathematical difficulties and disabilities and on exceptional talents in mathematics will also be welcomed. We also welcome articles on both genetic and environmental factors in individual differences in arithmetic. Environmental factors may include linguistic, cultural, educational, and social factors, or any combination of these. We also welcome articles on relationships between brain characteristics and individual differences in arithmetic. Articles on applications of research on individual differences to mathematics education and to interventions for children with mathematical difficulties will also be welcomed, as will articles on the implications of findings about individual differences to theories about the nature of numerical and mathematical cognition.