ArticleDevelopmental science2014
Why do spatial abilities predict mathematical performance?
Article in Developmental science, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed.
- Boosting executive functions and math abilities in adolescents with dyscalculia: the combined effect of prismatic adaptation and cognitive training.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Trial
- Gene × sex interactions on cognition in the Philadelphia neurodevelopmental cohort.Biology of sex differences · 2026Article
- Anxiety and Performance in High-Achieving Adolescents: Associations Among 8 General and Specific Anxiety Measures and 13 School Grades.PsyCh journal · 2026Article
- Developmental paths of the associations between visuospatial working memory and numerical processing.Psychological research · 2026Article
- Unlocking math potential in students from lower SES backgrounds - using instructional scaffolds to improve performance.NPJ science of learning · 2025Article
- Education Is Positively and Causally Linked With Spatial Navigation Ability Across the Lifespan.Open mind : discoveries in cognitive science · 2025Article
- Profiles of mathematical deficits in children with dyslexia.NPJ science of learning · 2024Article
- Evaluation of STEM students' spatial abilities based on a novel net cube imagination test.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Article
- No evidence of a positive effect of learning Chinese language as an L2 on spatial ability.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Malleability of spatial skills: bridging developmental psychology and toy design for joyful STEAM development.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Review
- Supporting preschoolers' cognitive development: Short- and mid-term effects of fluid reasoning, visuospatial, and motor training.Child development · 2022Article
- Measuring Spatial Ability for Talent Identification, Educational Assessment, and Support: Evidence from Adolescents with High Achievement in Science, Arts, and Sports.Psychology in Russia : state of the art · 2021Article
- What explains the relationship between spatial and mathematical skills? A review of evidence from brain and behavior.Psychonomic bulletin & review · 2020Review
- Genetic factors underlie the association between anxiety, attitudes and performance in mathematics.Translational psychiatry · 2020Article
- Exploring the Relationship Between Parental Involvement, Paper Folding Skills, and Early Spatial Ability: A Mediation Model.Frontiers in psychology · 2020Article
- Visual Processing Matters in Chinese Reading Acquisition and Early Mathematics.Frontiers in psychology · 2020Article
- The nature of the association between number line and mathematical performance: An international twin study.The British journal of educational psychology · 2019Article
- Coding Locations Relative to One or Many Landmarks in Childhood.PLoS computational biology · 2019Article
- The Connection Between Spatial and Mathematical Ability Across Development.Frontiers in psychology · 2018Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Spatial ability predicts performance in mathematics and eventual expertise in science, technology and engineering. Spatial skills have also been shown to rely on neuronal networks partially shared with mathematics. Understanding the nature of this association can inform educational practices and intervention for mathematical underperformance. Using data on two aspects of spatial ability and three domains of mathematical ability from 4174 pairs of 12-year-old twins, we examined the relative genetic and environmental contributions to variation in spatial ability and to its relationship with different aspects of mathematics. Environmental effects explained most of the variation in spatial ability (~70%) and in mathematical ability (~60%) at this age, and the effects were the same for boys and girls. Genetic factors explained about 60% of the observed relationship between spatial ability and mathematics, with a substantial portion of the relationship explained by common environmental influences (26% and 14% by shared and non-shared environments respectively). These findings call for further research aimed at identifying specific environmental mediators of the spatial-mathematics relationship.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.