Spatial Learning in a Virtual Environment: The Role of Self-Efficacy Feedback and Individual Visuospatial Factors

Abstract

We examined the roles self-efficacy plays in environmental learning in terms of self-efficacy feedback and task-specific (navigation-based) self-efficacy. We manipulated self-efficacy using positive and neutral feedback to investigate the relationship between receiving positive feedback and environmental learning performance and subsequent recall. A total of 231 participants were administered visuospatial tasks, where 117 received positive feedback, and 114 received neutral feedback. Then, we tested environmental learning using route retracing, pointing, and map-completion tasks. Before each environmental task, participants evaluated their task-specific self-efficacy. A series of spatial self-reported preferences were gathered as well. Mediation models showed that receiving positive feedback after a visuospatial task influences environmental recall performance through the mediation of task-specific self-efficacy. Moreover, after accounting for experimental manipulation and gender, we found that task-specific self-efficacy, sense of direction, and visuospatial abilities influence spatial-recall task performance, even with some differences as a function of the specific recall tasks considered. Overall, our findings suggest that among individual characteristics, task-specific self-efficacy can sustain environmental learning. Furthermore, giving positive feedback can improve spatial self-efficacy before conducting spatial-recall tasks.

Investigating the different domains of environmental knowledge acquired from virtual navigation and their relationship to cognitive factors and wayfinding inclinations

“…Looking at the beta values of our SEM model, each factor seems to contribute to environmental knowledge to a similar extent. This result differs from previous lab findings on learning from navigation in a desktop VE, when visuospatial abilities had a greater role than wayfinding inclinations (Hegarty et al, 2006 ; Meneghetti et al, 2021 ; Miola et al, 2021a , 2021b ; Pazzaglia et al, 2018 ). In the present study, the VE was navigated passively from an online video, and it showed a similar involvement of visuospatial abilities and wayfinding inclinations.…”

“…This means that women with higher abilities and inclinations can benefit from them similarly to men. While women with lower visuospatial abilities and inclinations may have lower environmental knowledge than men (in line with models inserting gender as an initial predictor, Miola et al, 2021a , 2021b ; Pazzaglia et al, 2018 ; see Additional file 1 ), the finding that gender does not affect the entity of the relationship between visuospatial factors and environmental knowledge highlights the importance of promoting and enhancing these human factors in environment knowledge acquisition, regardless of gender.…”

“…Given the well-known debate on gender-related differences in environmental knowledge (e.g., Nazareth et al, 2019 ), we also examined whether the structural equation model differed between men and women using a multiple-group approach aimed at detecting any difference in men and women in the relationship between variables hypothesized. Note the intent was not to investigate the effect of gender on environment knowledge through the mediation of visuospatial abilities and inclinations factor(s) (as in Miola et al, 2021a , 2021b ; Pazzaglia et al, 2018 ); however, this mediation is replicable with our data (see Additional file 1 ).…”

“…Although most previous studies have focused on active navigation, they have not necessarily considered all types of environmental knowledge. Some studies have focused on a single type of knowledge to answer a specific research question, such as assessing survey knowledge after navigation learning (Miola et al, 2021a , 2021b ). Further studies should compare passive and active navigation learning (e.g., Chrastil & Warren, 2015 ) and examine the resulting structure of environmental knowledge to provide a more complete picture.…”

Application of Virtual Reality in Spatial Memory

“…It includes eight contributions covering the application of VR for both children and adults. Six studies investigate which factors affect spatial navigation in VR: two investigate these factors during developmental ages (i.e., [10,11]), and the other four focus on young adults (i.e., [12][13][14][15]). One study reviews the applications of radial arm maze in both virtual and real versions (i.e., [16]), and the study by Zucchelli et al [17] shows how VR can be a proper differential diagnosis tool for mild agoraphobia disorders.…”