Selected Research Articles

STEM learning and its cognitive foundations

Starling-Alves, I., Matthews, P. G., & Hubbard, E. M. (2026). Nonsymbolic ratio and fraction magnitude processing predict fraction knowledge in early grades. Developmental Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0002231

Starling-Alves, I., Bonilla, D. A. S., Bandler, S. B., & Wilkey, E. D. (2026). Rational numbers: A systematic review and ALE meta-analysis of the neuroimaging of fraction and decimal processing in the brain. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 33(5). https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-026-02939-y

Starling-Alves, I., Wilkey, E. D. (2026). Congruency and Distance Effects Vary Across Simultaneous and Sequential Two-Digit Integer, Fraction, and Decimal 2AFC Tasks. Behavior Research Methods, 58 (5), 117. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-026-02958-6 

Starling-Alves, I., Liao, X., Huang, Q., Bolt, D. M., Hubbard, E. M., & Matthews, P. G. (2026) Tracking fraction knowledge development with grade-appropriate measures. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2026.106488

Starling-Alves, I., Gomides, M.R.A., Ribeiro, D., Haase, V.G., & Hubbard, E.M. (2024). From one half to 12th: fraction writing in children and adult education students. Journal of Numerical Cognition, 10, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.5964/jnc.11475

Starling-Alves, I., Russell-Lasalandra, L. L.*, Lau, N. T. T., Paiva, G. M., Haase, V.G., & Wilkey, E. D. (2024). Number and domain both affect the relation between executive function and mathematics achievement: A study of children’s executive function with and without numbers. Developmental Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001814

Lau, N. T., Wilkey, E. D., Soltanlou, M., Lagacé Cusiac, R., Peters, L., Tremblay, P., ... & Ansari, D. (2022). Numeracy and COVID-19: examining interrelationships between numeracy, health numeracy and behaviour. Royal Society open science, 9(3), 201303. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.201303

Developmental dyscalculia and learning difficulties

Starling-Alves, I., Shanley, L., Cook, M.A., Sabb, F. W., Smith, J., Clarke, B. & Wilkey, E. D. (2025). Children identified for classroom-based math support show altered resting-state connectivity in parietal brain regions. Scientific Reports, 15 (1), 27013. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-12809-7

Starling-Alves, I., Peters, L., & Wilkey, E. D. (2025). Beyond the sum of their parts: a multi-dimensional approach to dyscalculia-dyslexia comorbidity integrating studies of the brain, behavior, and genetics. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 72, 101510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2025.101510

Starling-Alves, I., Hirata, G., & Oliveira, J. B. A. (2023). Covid-19 school closures negatively impacted Elementary-school students’ reading comprehension and reading fluency skills. International Journal of Educational Development, 102753. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2023.102753

Starling-Alves, I., Júlio-Costa, A., Moura, R. J. D., & Haase, V. G. (2021). Nonsymbolic and symbolic numerical magnitude processing in the Brazilian children with mathematics difficulties. Dementia & Neuropsychologia, 15, 524-532. https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-57642021dn15-040013

Gomides, M. R. A., Starling-Alves, I., Paiva, G.M., Caldeira, L.S., Aichinger, A.L.P.N., Carvalho, M.R. S., Bahnmueller, J., Moeller, K., Lopes-Silva, J.B., & Haase, V.G. (2021). The quandary of diagnosing mathematical difficulties in a generally low performing population. Dementia & Neuropsychologia, 15, 267-274. https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-57642021dn15-020015

Gomides, M. R. A., Martins, G. A., Starling-Alves, I., Júlio-Costa, A., Jaeger, A., & Haase, V. G. (2018). Heterogeneity of math difficulties and its implications for interventions in multiplication skills. Dementia & Neuropsychologia, 12, 256-263. https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-57642018dn12-030006

Júlio‐Costa, A., Starling‐Alves, I., Lopes‐Silva, J. B., Wood, G., & Haase, V. G. (2015). Stable measures of number sense accuracy in math learning disability: Is it time to proceed from basic science to clinical application?. PsyCh journal, 4(4), 218-225. https://doi.org/10.1002/pchj.114

Haase, V. G., Júlio-Costa, A., Lopes-Silva, J. B., Starling-Alves, I., Antunes, A. M., Pinheiro-Chagas, P., & Wood, G. (2014). Contributions from specific and general factors to unique deficits: two cases of mathematics learning difficulties. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 102. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00102

Pinheiro-Chagas, P., Wood, G., Knops, A., Krinzinger, H., Lonnemann, J., Starling-Alves, I., Willmes, K., & Haase, V. G. (2014). In how many ways is the approximate number system associated with exact calculation?. PLoS one, 9, e111155. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0111155

Antunes, A. M., Costa, A. J., Starling-Alves, I., Paiva, G. M., & Haase, V. G. (2013). Reabilitação neuropsicológica do transtorno de aprendizagem da matemática na síndrome de Turner: um estudo de caso. Neuropsicologia Latinoamericana, 66-75. http://dx.doi.org/10.5579/rnl.2013.0140

Haase, V.G., Costa, A. J., Antunes, A.M., & Starling-Alves, I. (2012). Heterogeneidade cognitiva nas dificuldades de aprendizagem da matemática: uma revisão bibliográfica. Psicologia em Pesquisa, 139-150. https://doi.org/10.5327/Z1982-12472012000200007

Math anxiety

Trassi, A. P.*, Starling-Alves, I., & Santos, F. H. (2026). Understanding the selective impact of math anxiety on mathematical skills in first graders. Frontiers in Education, 10, 1696557. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2025.1696557

Mielicki, M. K., Wilkey, E. D., Scheibe, D. A., Fitzsimmons, C. J., Sidney, P. G., Bellon, E., Ribner, A. D., Soltanlou, M., Starling-Alves, I., Coolen, I., Ansari, D., & Thompson, C. A. (2023). Task features change the relation between math anxiety and number line estimation performance with rational numbers: Two large-scale online studies. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 152(7), 2094–2117. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0001382

Starling‐Alves, I., Wronski, M. R.*, & Hubbard, E. M. (2022). Math anxiety differentially impairs symbolic, but not nonsymbolic, fraction skills across development. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1509(1), 113-129. https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.14715