The role of numeracy skills on the Wisconsin card sorting test (WCST) performances of 5-to 8-year-old Turkish children

Abstract

The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) is one of the most widely used complex EF task for various populations. However, it seems questionable to employ the task for preschool-aged children due to their lack of numerical efficiency while sorting cards according to the number dimension. The present study aimed to examine the association of numeracy skills with different EF-related abilities as measured by the WCST. For the assessment of numeracy skills, we used the Early Numeracy Test (ENT). One hundred and fourteen Turkish children between the ages of 5 and 8 were administered the WCST and ENT in a counterbalanced order. Results revealed a significant correlation only between the three ENT scores and the concept formation factor of the WCST, indicating a significant relationship between the WCST performance and numeracy skills in terms of concept formation. This finding highlights the specific relation between numeracy skills and subcomponents of the WCST and points to potential interfering variables that should be taken into account while evaluating the scores of the sorting tasks for children between the ages of 5 and 8.