Processing the magnitude of fractions

This study explored the cognitive processes and representations involved in the numerical comparison of fractions. The fractions magnitude could be processed in an analytic way (based on the magnitude of their components) or in a holistic way. In this study, fractions had either a common denominator or a common numerator. To identify the representations involved in the comparison of each category of fractions, we analyzed: (1) the effect of the numerical distance between fractions and between their components and (2) the effect of comparing fractions on subsequent comparison of natural numbers