Relating Reading, Visualization, and Coding for New Programmers: A Neuroimaging Study

TL;DR

This neuroimaging study investigates how novice programmers' brains activate during coding, reading, and spatial tasks, revealing distinct neural patterns and potential predictors of programming performance.

Contribution

It is the first to compare neural activity of novices during coding, reading, and spatial tasks using fNIRS, providing new insights into early programming cognition.

Findings

Coding activates brain areas linked to spatial ability more than in experts.

Coding, reading, and mental rotation are neurally distinct in novices.

Neural patterns can predict programming performance weeks later.

Abstract

Understanding how novices reason about coding at a neurological level has implications for training the next generation of software engineers. In recent years, medical imaging has been increasingly employed to investigate patterns of neural activity associated with coding activity. However, such studies have focused on advanced undergraduates and professionals. In a human study of 31 participants, we use functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure the neural activity associated with introductory programming. In a controlled, contrast-based experiment, we relate brain activity when coding to that of reading natural language or mentally rotating objects (a spatial visualization task). Our primary result is that all three tasks -- coding, prose reading, and mental rotation -- are mentally distinct for novices. However, while those tasks are neurally distinct, we find more significant differences between prose and coding than between mental rotation and coding. Intriguingly, we generally find more activation in areas of the brain associated with spatial ability and task difficulty for novice coding compared to that reported in studies with more expert developers. Finally, in an exploratory analysis, we also find a neural activation pattern predictive of programming performance 11 weeks later. While preliminary, these findings both expand on previous results (e.g., relating expertise to a similarity between coding and prose reading) and also provide a new understanding of the cognitive processes underlying novice programming.