Spatial Tests, Familiarity with the Surroundings, and Spatial Activity Experience

Abstract

Spatial orientation as the ability to know the bearing to the origin of a walked path was investigated in two studies with ca. 140 preschool and primary school children who walked paths of about 1 km beginning at the familiar kindergarten or in a completely unknown territory. Path difficulty and familiarity with the surroundings influenced correctness of pointing. Spatial ability measured by test performance and spatial activity experience, i.e., children’s reports about unsupervised walks, effected pointing accuracy as well. The data emphasize that spatial activity experience may be an important factor for spatial orientation beyond kindergarten age.

Landmark and route knowledge in children’s spatial representation of a virtual environment

“…This perceptual test requires the ability to judge directions, distances and angles, but also to represent an imaginary line. Such abilities are also required for large-scale pointing, often used to measure wayfinding capacities (e.g., Neidhardt and Popp, 2010 ). Quaiser-Pohl et al (2004) studied the relationship between spatial abilities and spatial representation of a large-scale environment in second-, fourth-, and sixth- graders.…”

Sex differences in mental rotation and cortical activation patterns: Can training change them?

“…In contrast, other authors have suggested that the differences are the result of experience and the differential participation of male and female children in activities, combined with hormonal changes during puberty (Jordan & Wüstenberg, 2010;Roberts & Bell, 2002). Support for the latter hypothesis is provided by recent studies showing that mental rotation performance can be enhanced with practice, and that these enhancements are sex-specific (Feng, Spence, & Pratt, 2007;Neidhardt & Popp, 2010;Quaiser-Pohl & Lehmann, 2002).…”

New Approaches to Studying Individual Differences in Spatial Abilities

“…Several papers focus on the development of spatial abilities in childhood : Which task, person, and environmental factors predict how well children are oriented in real environments (Neidhardt & Popp)? How does the ability to use maps develop ontogenetically, and how can proficiency in map use be measured (Peter, Glück, & Beiglböck)?…”