It does exist! a left-to-right spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) effect among native hebrew speakers

Bar Zohar-Shai, Joseph Tzelgov, Avi Karni, Orly Rubinsten

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Several studies, starting with Dehaene, Bossini, and Giraux (1993), have reported that, in parity-judgment tasks, the difference in response latencies generated by the right and left hand are negatively correlated with number magnitudes. This SNARC (spatial-numerical association of response codes) effect is in line with the notion that the "mental number line" extends from left to right. The SNARC effect has been found mainly in native speakers of Germanic/Romanic languages; it has been suggested that the SNARC effect may derive from the experience of reading from left to right. To date, there is no evidence that the SNARC (or reverse SNARC) effect exists in parity judgments in native speakers of Hebrew readers. Here we provide the first demonstration of a horizontal, left-to-right SNARC effect in native speakers of Hebrew performing the parity task. Although we found no SNARC effect using the standard parity task, a reliable SNARC effect was found when we succeeded in reducing the MARC (markedness association of response codes) effect. We succeeded in reducing the MARC effect by implementing the parity task in 2 sessions, on 2 different days, each time using a different mapping of the parity-to-response side.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)719-728
Number of pages10
JournalJournal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance
Volume43
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Apr 2017

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (Grant 1799/12) for the Center for the Study of the Neurocognitive Basis of Numerical Cognition, University of Haifa.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 American Psychological Association.

Keywords

  • Hebrew
  • MARC effect
  • Mental number line
  • Reading direction
  • SNARC effect

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
  • Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
  • Behavioral Neuroscience

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'It does exist! a left-to-right spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) effect among native hebrew speakers'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this